Abstract
Two experiments were conducted using yearling beef bulls to determine the relationships between body orientation and air temperature and solar radiation in winter. In exp. 1, observations were made at noon on 23 days from December to April to determine the orientation of 90 bulls as a deviation from an angle perpendicular to the sun's rays (ANG). The mean value of ANG for standing, non-eating bulls was 38.2°. In general, ANG decreased as direct radiation increased or temperature decreased. On cold sunny days, 53% of the standing bulls (n = 313) had ANG values of less than 20°, and the proportion decreased to only 31% of the bulls (n = 270)on warm cloudy days. In exp. 2, ANG was determined for 15 bulls at hourly intervals during the daylight hours on six occasions from January to April. Bulls stood closer to the perpendicular early in the day when temperatures were low, and when solar radiation was high. The results of these experiments indicated that bulls modified their body orientation to increase exposure to solar radiation on cold sunny days.
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