Farms In Florida Research Articles

Outbreak of hypersensitivity pneumonitis among mushroom farm workers

Between April 1982 and August 1985, seven cases of mushroom worker's lung (MWL), a form of hypersensitivity pneumonitis, were diagnosed among workers at one mushroom farm in Florida. The cases suffered from episodic shortness of breath, cough, fever and chills, myalgia, malaise, and difficulty breathing. Pulmonary function testing revealed restrictive ventilatory impairment and reduced diffusing capacity; chest radiographs exhibited diffuse interstitial pulmonary infiltrates. The seven cases occurred among workers from different farm operations, suggesting that workers throughout the farm were exposed to the disease causing agent(s). Six of the affected workers left employment at the farm in order to remain free of symptoms. The other affected worker was able to continue working at the farm, but only by remaining in a maintenance shop which was physically separated from the rest of the farm facilities. An industrial hygiene survey demonstrated that farm workers from every work area were exposed to organic dust constituents suspected of causing MWL, but no specific antigens were identified as the cause of the cases. Of the remaining workers who participated in a cross-sectional respiratory morbidity survey at the farm, approximately 20% of the more heavily exposed workers reported occasionally experiencing symptoms consistent with MWL. Approximately 10% of the workers had below normal spirometry test results, but interpretation was hampered by the diverse racial makeup of the population and lack of an adequate comparison group. No abnormalities consistent with either acute or chronic MWL were seen on the chest radiographs. Serologic tests demonstrated that almost all workers had been exposed to antigens capable of causing MWL, but the results were not associated with health status. At the time of the cross-sectional survey, no workers were found to be suffering acute respiratory problems consistent with MWL.

Detection of antibodies to Mycoplasma gallisepticum in egg yolk versus serum samples

Serum (n = 1,636) and egg yolk (n = 802) samples collected from hens on four commercial egg farms in Florida were tested for the presence of specific antibodies to Mycoplasma gallisepticum in a commercially available enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. No significant differences were noted between serum and egg yolk samples with respect to distribution of positive, suspect, and negative test results or for the mean sample/positive control ratio values of positive, suspect, and negative test results. A linear relationship between the distribution of positive and negative results and the age of the birds was observed for results obtained with both serum and egg yolk samples. On the basis of the results of this study, egg yolk samples can be used in lieu of serum samples to screen flocks for antibodies to Mycoplasma gallisepticum.

BEE-SCENT FOR IMPROVED POLLINATION OF WATERMELON

Watermelon, Citrullus lanatus (Thunb.) Matsum. & Nakai, requires insects, most commonly honey bees, for pollination and fruit set. The transfer of an adequate amount of pollen is essential to ensure optimum fruit set, size, and shape. To encourage bee visits and the transfer of pollen, two applications of Bee-Scent*, a bee attractant, at 2.47 liter·ha-1 were made to watermelon on five farms in central and southwest Florida. Honey bee, Apis melifera L., activity was monitored for two days following each application and yield and fruit quality were determined. On only a few occasions was increased honey bee activity noted. Application of bee attractant increased total yield in one field in central Florida and resulted in an increase in early yield at all three locations in southwest Florida. Soluble solids content of mature fruit was not directly affected by treatment. Treatment increased the seed content of fruit from three of five farms.

Financial comparison of three testing strategies for detection of estrus in dairy cattle

Summary Three commercial tests that measure progesterone content in milk were evaluated for accuracy of estrus detection. The tests were evaluated on 96 milk samples collected from Holstein cows at a commercial dairy farm in central Florida. The test results were compared with the results of radioimmunoassay on the same sample. Comparisons were made by calculating the sensitivities, specificities, and predictive values. The significance of the statistical association between the tests and the radioimmunoassay was evaluated by use of the McNemar χ2 test. Decision-tree analysis was used to determine the most useful testing strategy, considering both cost and accuracy. The cowside progesterone assay on estrus-mount detector-positive cows was more profitable than use of estrus-mount patches alone. The return on investment was higher with the cowside test, making it preferred as a field test for detecting estrus.

Factors Influencing Profitability of Jersey and Holstein Lactations

Dairy Herd Improvement Association production records and farm records on clinical mastitis treatment from 1617 Holstein and Jersey cows calving between July 1980 and July 1983 on one farm in north Florida were used to evaluate the profitability of 2414 lactations. The investigation demonstrates the use of a profit function to determine the relative importance of factors influencing profitability of lactations of different breed, parity and season of calving. It serves to indicate changes that would yield the greatest financial reward by identifying major inherent economic strengths and weaknesses.Breed, parity, and season of calving accounted for less than 10% of the variation in profit per lactation. Holstein lactations were more profitable than Jersey lactations except for parity 4 lactations and for cows calving between January and June when no significant breed differences were apparent. Milk yield was the single most important determinant of profitability in Jersey lactations, regardless of parity or season of calving. Days of mastitis treatment explained more of the variation in profit per lactation than did milk yield for Holstein lactations calving between January and March and for Holstein lactations of parity greater than 4. Mastitis costs were a maximum of 8.2% of total costs for Holstein lactations of parity 6.

Clinical, Clinicopathologic, and Epidemiologic Features of Anhidrosis in Central Florida Thoroughbred Horses

A group of 834 Thoroughbred horses was surveyed on four central Florida farms for clinical and epidemiologic features of anhidrosis. In addition, comparative analysis was made of serum thyroxine, serum electrolytes, and fractional urinary electrolyte excretion ratios. An overall disease prevalence of 6.12% was observed. Training horses and nonpregnant broodmares had a predilection for the disease. Adolescent horses were infrequently affected. There was no correlation with sex or color. Comparative clinical signs, related to thermoregulatory compromise, included tachypnea and hyperthermia. Long-term effect included focal and generalized alopecia, decreased appetite, and impaired performance. Previously reported hypothyroidism and hypochloremia were not demonstrated; however, fractional urinary chloride excretion ratios indicated a significant relative conservation of chloride.

Potential Problems of Bird Predation for Fish Culture in Florida

Abstract Florida offers excellent potential for aquacultural production of finfish; however, the abundance and diversity of fish-eating birds in Florida may present problems to successful fish production. From a survey of available literature, we identified 35 avian species that potentially can adversely affect production at fish farms in Florida. We have summarized pertinent aspects of the life histories of those species and have estimated daily food-consumption rates from energetic models. Twelve avian species feed entirely on fish and at least 21 additional species include fish in their diet. Twenty bird species had estimated summer food-consumption rates exceeding 100 g/d. Although only three species were categorized as abundant in Florida, almost all avian species that are potential predators at aquacultural facilities can attain high densities if suitable nesting habitats are available.

Importance of Body Condition Scoring in Dairy Cattle

It is doubtful that many of today's dairy herds, fed rations balanced to NRC standards, experience reproductive problems solely because of nutrition. Nutrients and how their deficiencies and excesses affect reproduction have been reviewed.1,6 Further research is needed to investigate combinations of nutrients and the subsequent effect on reproduction.
 Some veterinary practitioners are convinced that there are profound interrelationships between the nutritional status of dairy cattle and their reproductive performance. This clinical impression was fostered because in many cases regular reproductive tract examinations alone were not adequate to ensure good herd reproductive health and reproductive efficiency. In some cases this impression is justified, but in many cases nutrition is the scapegoat for environment, stress, disease and the main problem of missed heats and other poor reproductive management practices.
 This paper will discuss body condition scoring cows on a large dairy farm in north Florida, and its effect upon reproductive performance and 305-day mature equivalent four percent fat-corrected milk (ME 305).

Título en español.

Durante los años de 1970 al 1974 se realizaron cinco pruebas regionales con nuevas variedades de caña de azúcar para determinar su aptitud en diferentes zonas ecológicas en la región sur de Puerto Rico. Un total de 60 variedades, entre las cuales se incluyeron siete que eran las variedades comerciales que se sembraban en la zona, se evaluaron en los distintos sitios: Finca Rufina en Guayanilla, Fincas Unión y Cintrona Segunda en Ponce, y Fincas Centro y Florida en la zona Santa Isabel-Salinas. El experimento en la Finca Rufina se sembró en un suelo de la serie San Antón, usándose un diseño reticulado compensado, e incluyendo 25 variedades; los experimentos en las Fincas Unión y Cintrona Segunda, en suelos de la serie San Antón, respectivamente. En ambos experimentos se incluyeron 25 variedades. En ambos se usaron los diseños reticulados compensados, con seis repeticiones y cinco tratamientos por bloque. El experimento de la Colonia Centro se sembró en un suelo de la serie Santa Isabel, usándose un diseño reticulado rectangular, con seis repeticiones y cinco tratamientos por bloque. En este experimento se incluyeron 30 variedades. En la Colonia Florida, en un suelo de la serie San Antón, se sembró otro experimento incluyendo 25 variedades, usándose un diseño reticulado compensado, con seis repeticiones y cinco tratamientos por bloque. Se recopilaron datos experimentales sobre el rendimiento, tonelajes de caña y de azúcar por acre en una cosecha de "grancultura" y en dos retoños. También se observaron otras características agronómicas, tales como macollamiento, retoñamiento, hábito de crecimiento y contenido de fibra. En la zona de Guayanilla, las variedades PR 63-488, CP 52-43, PR 63-525, aunque no sobrepasaron significativamente la producción de las variedades comerciales, poseen ciertas características agronómicas que facilitan el corte mecanizado reduciendo así los costos de producción. En la zona de Ponce las variedades superiores fueron PR 61-632, PR 63-525 y PR 64-1791 . Esta última, aunque de calidad de jugos inferior a la de las variedades testigo, produce buen tonelaje de caña, es deporte erguido y tolera condiciones de sequía. En la zona de Santa Isabel a Salinas sobresalieron las variedades PR 61-632, PR 1152, PR 63-525, PR 64-1791 y PR 1124. Aunque algunas otras variedades son tan buenas productoras de azúcar por acre como las variedades mencionadas, éstas se adaptan más a las demandas de una industria totalmente mecanizada.

Farmers' Opinions about Bird Conservation and Pest Management on Organic and Conventional North Florida Farms

This document is Circular 1426, one of a series of the Wildlife Ecology and Conservation Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Original publication date: December 2002.
 Cir1426/UW169: Farmers' Opinions about Bird Conservation and Pest Management on Organic and Conventional North Florida Farms (ufl.edu)

Thoroughbred Horse Farming in Florida

Thoroughbred Horse Farming in Florida Alice Luthy Tym and James R. Anderson * In the western part of Marion County in north-central Florida, in the vicinity of Ocala, a major new industry has developed in recent years. The breeding and raising of Thoroughbred horses in the Ocala area actually was begun by Carl Rose in the 1930's. However, the industry remained small for many years, and only three Thoroughbred farms existed in 1956 when Needles, a Florida-bred horse, won the Kentucky Derby. By 1960 the Ocala Stud Farm, one of the three farms in existence in 1956 and the breeding place of Needles, emerged as a major commercial breeder of Thoroughbreds. Today, only a little more than Ì0 years after the first significant victory, Florida ranks third after Kentucky and California in the breeding of Thoroughbreds. Only in the Lexington (Bluegrass area) of Kentucky is there a greater local concentration of Thoroughbred production. In 1966 there were 75 Thoroughbred farms in the western part of Marion County (Fig. 1). These farms occupy in total nearly 27,000 acres and have a horse population of nearly 4,500. (1) The 1956 victory by Needles was followed by the Kentucky Derby victory of Carry Back in 1962. These two triumphs, plus the success of the Ocala Stud Farm in producing a sizeable number of stakes stars in a relatively few years, had served to give the Ocala area a favorable image as a rival of the Bluegrass and other Thoroughbred centers in California, Virginia, Maryland, and elsewhere. When Roman Brother was named the 1965 Horse of the Year by the Morning Telegraph and Daily Racing Form, thus ending Kelso's five-year reign, the Thoroughbred industry of Marion County was firmly established and recognized. These successes on the race track undoubtedly gave the necessary triggering impact or the initial impetus to the establishment of Thoroughbred production in Florida. A careful evaluation of responses given by managers and owners of Thoroughbred farms to a senes of questions used for obtaining information in this study clearly indicates, however, that several basic conditions were significant in accounting for the development of the industry. Climate was most frequently given as one of the contributing factors for establishing a Thoroughbred farm in central Florida. The mild winter temperatures allow horses to be outside throughout the year. This means especially favorable conditions for exercising and training horses. The training tracks are never frozen. Favorable winter temperatures also permit early foaling and, since all Thoroughbreds are given a January first birthday, the Florida horse has a two-or-more month advantage over those of Kentucky and the Eastern breeding centers. The early foaling permits earlier training and track workouts; this is particularly important, since two-year-old racing is stressed in the United States. By planting winter rye and oats, year-round grazing is available, thus reducing the volume of grain •Mrs. Tym was a Ford Foundation Fellow at the University of Florida, Gainesville, where she^ received her M.A. degree in 1966. Dr. Anderson is professor of Geography at the University of Florida. The paper was accepted for publication in December 1967. Vol. VII, 1967 51 G" SCALE 0 ! 2 ? 4 5 (^ ? -T- "V THOROUGHBREDµ? HORSE FARMS 'r ~? ..·' * STUDY AREA55 STUDY AREA MARION COUNTY, FLORIDA 1966 • THOROUGHBRED HORSE FARM MARION COUNTY Figure 1 52The Southeastern Geographer and hay necessary for feeding programs. An indirect but very significant climatic advantage is the possibility of year-round racing in the tourist and resort areas of Florida. Next to climate, the favorable combination of soil, topography, and vegetation was repeatedly cited by owners and managers as a major single reason for locating their Thoroughbred farms in this particular part of Florida. Evidence that an intangible aesthetic factor has played a role in the location of these farms in Florida is not hard to discern. Those owners who moved from the Kentucky Bluegrass region particularly liked the rolling hammock landscape with its large five oak shade trees; this landscape tended to duplicate in general appearance the Bluegrass region which has become so closely associated with the breeding and rearing of Thoroughbreds (Fig. 2). The Fellowship-Hague-Zuber soil association is...

Kumri—so-called Lumbar Paralysis—Of Horses in Ceylon (India And Burma), and its Identification with Cerebrospinal Nematodiasis

For over a decade, Salmonella contamination has increasingly led to outbreaks of foodborne illness associated with fresh produce. The use of untreated animal manures, or biological soil amendments of animal origin, to amend agricultural soils holds a risk of contamination from foodborne pathogens, such as Salmonella. This study was conducted to determine the prevalence, concentration, serotypes, and antimicrobial resistance profiles of Salmonella in poultry litter from Florida farms. Litter pH, total Kjeldahl nitrogen, total ammonia nitrogen, total phosphorus (P2O5), total potassium (K2O), moisture content, total solids, total ash, organic matter, and aerobic plate count (APC) were also measured. Litter samples (n = 54) were collected from 18 broiler farms across three seasons (spring, summer, and winter). Salmonella concentrations were enumerated using a most-probable-number (MPN) method, and antimicrobial susceptibility testing was performed. The prevalence of Salmonella in litter samples was 61.1%, with a geometric mean of 0.21 ± 20.7 MPN/g. Across all seasons, Salmonella concentrations were not influenced by the chemical, physical, or microbial properties measured. Recovered Salmonella isolates (n = 290) were grouped into serogroups O:4 (43.1%), O:7 (26.9%), O:8 (11.0%), O:1,3,10,19 (7.9%), and O:9,46 (7.2%). Serotyping Salmonella isolates (n = 47) resulted in 12 serotypes, with the most common being Typhimurium (27.7%), Kentucky (17.0%), Enteritidis (14.9%), and Mbandaka (14.9%). Antimicrobial resistance to tetracycline (29.8%), sulfisoxazole (23.4%), and streptomycin (14.9%) was observed. No isolates were resistant to more than two antimicrobial agents. This study provides valuable information for future risk assessments for the use of poultry litter as an untreated biological soil amendment of animal origin.Prevalence and concentration of Salmonella in Florida poultry litter were examined.Serovars Typhimurium, Kentucky, Enteritidis, and Mbandaka were most common.Antimicrobial resistance to tetracycline, sulfisoxazole, and streptomycin was seen.Multidrug-resistant Salmonella isolates were not observed.

A Nutritional Disease of Oats Apparently Due to the Lack of Copper

A deficiency of available copper in the soil is reported to have caused a nutritional disease of oats in Europe (1) and in Australia (2), but apparently this disease has not been reported in this country. However, a similar disease has appeared in oats planted on the Experiment Station Farm at Gainesville, Florida, and this report is concerned with the symptoms of the trouble and the remedy for it. The oat variety, Florida 167, when grown on certain parts of the Experiment Station Farm, has exhibited for several years an apparent nutritional disease. Others varieties have been affected, although they have been grown to a lesser extent. The symptoms of this disease develop on this variety as follows: After being seeded at the usual planting time in November, the oats come up and at first appear normal. The only difference detected after about two months is that the affected oats are smaller than nonaffected plants. In later stages of growth, about three degrees of severity of the symptoms have been noted, namely, severe, moderate, and slight. In severe cases the leaves begin to show a characteristic marginal chlorosis early in February. As the disturbance progresses, the margin and tips of the leaves become brown or may look as if they have been scorched. Tillers begin developing about the middle of February. The emerging tips forming the bud of the tillers frequently are rolled up tightly, and the rolled-up part becomes light colored, then brown, and eventually may die. After that the entire plant may die or may struggle along, putting out new tillers which in turn develop similar characteristics. Such plants produce practically no heads and little foliage. If the condition is moderate, the plants will have some of the characteristics described above. New tillers develop late, which results in the plant material being immature at normal harvesting time. The oats produce heads, but instead of ripening to a normal yellow color, these heads tend to have a whitish-green color, and very little grain is produced. Slightly affected plants appear normal except for considerable blasting and light grain. Sometimes the upper leaves, which cover the head just as it emerges, are chlorotic and may even appear scorched. Symptoms of this nature on this variety have been observed on several farms in central Florida. Affected plants seem to develop wiry roots that show root rot in various stages, but this is probably secondary in nature. There was no apparent difference in the amount of Helminthiosporium leaf spot on affected and normal plants. Field experiments, in which the Florida 167 variety was grown, were conducted in a badly affected area' in an effort to determine the cause of the abnormality. In one set of experiments a uniform liberal application of the major fertilizer elements, nitrogen, phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, and sulfur, was applied. In addition to the major elements, copper, zinc, manganese, boron, and molybdenum were applied to the soil in all possible combinations before seeding the oats. The copper was applied as copper chloride at the rate of 10 pounds/acre. The seed were treated with New

CONTACT DERMATITIS DUE TO MANGO

Case 1.— A 29 year old woman presented an acute vesicular dermatitis of three days' duration which involved both lips and a moderately large circumoral area. There was no history of contact with any of the common substances usually responsible for a dermatitis in this location. She stated that two days prior to the onset she received a case of mangoes from her father, who owns a fruit farm in Florida. About twenty-four hours after eating a mango itching developed about her mouth, and her lips began to swell. Examination revealed an erythematovesicular eruption involving both lips, the chin and both cheeks. The lips were edematous and she had difficulty in opening the mouth. There were no lesions on the mucous membranes of the mouth. The patient stated that she felt nauseated after eating the mangoes. Her past history is irrelevant with the exception that she had had attacks of