Track 2-04: Animal-Plant Interactions
Description
Besides grazing, the animals carry a host of other essential activities to their survival, such as rumination, vigilance and idling, and these activities compete with each other in the animal’s daily time (Fonseca et al. 2012). Therefore, any management action that provides an increase in forage intake rate, with a consequent reduction in the time necessary to achieve the daily nutrient requirements, is essential for an animal product-ion success. In this study, four experiments were performed based upon the hypothesis that different sward structures, formed by distinct sward surface heights (SSH) and levels of grazing down influence the short-term herbage intake rate (STIR).
Included in
Management Targets to Maximize Short-Term Herbage Intake Rate
Besides grazing, the animals carry a host of other essential activities to their survival, such as rumination, vigilance and idling, and these activities compete with each other in the animal’s daily time (Fonseca et al. 2012). Therefore, any management action that provides an increase in forage intake rate, with a consequent reduction in the time necessary to achieve the daily nutrient requirements, is essential for an animal product-ion success. In this study, four experiments were performed based upon the hypothesis that different sward structures, formed by distinct sward surface heights (SSH) and levels of grazing down influence the short-term herbage intake rate (STIR).
