Abstract
Recent research in range ecology has emphasized the importance of forage quality as a key indicator of rangeland condition. However, we lack tools to evaluate forage quality at scales appropriate for management. Using canopy reflectance data to measure forage quality has been conducted at both laboratory and field levels separately, but little work has been conducted to evaluate these methods simultaneously. The objective of this study is to find a reliable way of assessing grassland quality through measuring forage chemistry with reflectance. We studied a mixed grass ecosystem in Grasslands National Park of Canada and surrounding pastures, located in southern Saskatchewan. Spectral reflectance was collected at both in-situ field level and in the laboratory. Vegetation samples were collected at each site, sorted into the green grass portion, and then sent to a chemical company for measuring forage quality variables, including protein, lignin, ash, moisture at 135 °C, Neutral Detergent Fiber (NDF), Acid Detergent Fiber (ADF), Total Digestible, Digestible Energy, Net Energy for Lactation, Net Energy for Maintenance, and Net Energy for Gain. Reflectance data were processed with the first derivative transformation and continuum removal method. Correlation analysis was conducted on spectral and forage quality variables. A regression model was further built to investigate the possibility of using canopy spectral measurements to predict the grassland quality. Results indicated that field level prediction of protein of mixed grass species was possible (r2 = 0.63). However, the relationship between canopy reflectance and the other forage quality variables was not strong.
Highlights
Recent research in rangeland ecology has emphasized the importance of forage quality as a key indicator of rangeland condition [1,2,3,4]
Our data show that the strongest correlation between forage quality and remote sensing data was not from ex situ spectral reflectance measurements of dried grass samples in the laboratory, but from in situ reflectance measures made on the vegetation canopy
Our reflectance values from in situ samples showed consistently higher correlations to chemical composition than from dried samples, despite the field samples being a mixture of green grass, forb, shrub, dead materials, and soil
Summary
Recent research in rangeland ecology has emphasized the importance of forage quality as a key indicator of rangeland condition [1,2,3,4]. Given the opportunity, grazing animals select forage of high nutritional quality, which usually means that they are selecting forage that is not the most abundant [5,6,7,8,9]. Forage quality has been frequently reported to affect the behavior of mammalian herbivores (e.g., [10,11,12]). The evaluation or mapping of forage quality at temporal and spatial scales appropriate for animal management is a challenge, it can improve understanding of animal behaviour. Forage quality can be expressed via grass chemical composition and nutrient concentration. Chemical composition mainly refers to protein, lignin, ash, moisture (at 135 oC), Neutral Detergent
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
More From: International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.