Ingestive behavior of Girolando heifers in integrated crop, livestock (ICL), and forestry (ICLF) systems

E.C Souza,P.G Cruz,A.K.D Salman,G.A Carvalho,F.R.F Silva

doi:10.1590/1678-4162-12174

Abstract

ABSTRACT Aiming to compare integrated crop, livestock (ICL) and forest (ICLF) systems in relation to ingestive behavior of dairy heifers, a 2 × 2 crossover trial was conducted with two periods and two systems. Eight Girolando (3/4holstein × 1/4 Gyr) heifers were evaluated in pasture of Xaraés palisade grass (Urochloa brizantha ‘Xaraes’ syn Brachiaria brizantha) managed with intermittent stocking. The ICLF systemhad eucalyptus trees planted in tiers with 65% crown cover. Ingestive behavior parameters were obtained using acoustic data collected with mP3 recorders for 48hours. Statistical analysis was performed using the mixed procedure of SAS, and means were compared using the Tukey-Kramer test at 5% significance. The dry mater intake (DMI), number of daily grazing sessions, and the duration of the grazing sessions did not differ (P<0.05) between systems. A higher (P<0.05) bite rate and total daily bites and lower (P<0.05) bite mass was observed in the ICLF system in relation to ICL. Heifers in shaded pasture change their ingestive behavior in comparison with those in full-sun pasture.

Highlights

Grazing animals need to maintain constant forage intake throughout the day in order to meet their nutritional requirements
Bovine ingestive behavior can be evaluated by the variables grazing time, bite rate, and bite mass, which are influenced by the sward structure
The bite rate (BR) and daily total bite (TB) of Girolando heifers were different (P

Summary

Introduction

Grazing animals need to maintain constant forage intake throughout the day in order to meet their nutritional requirements. In order to maintain constant dry mater intake and reach their daily nutritional requirements, animals undergo behavioral changes, such as increasing or decreasing grazing time, and changing the number of jaw movements for harvesting and processing fodder according to its height, density, leaf:stem ratio, and the spatial arrangement of sward leaves (Camargo et al, 2012; Yayota et al, 2015).

Results

Conclusion