bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Aspects of intertidal ecology with reference to conservation of Scottish seashores
Authors: Wilkinson Martin
Published: June 2019

Synopsis

Some of the more basic features of intertidal rocky shore communities are reviewed in order to point out the biological variability of this habitat type. This means that biological survey of them could be very detailed or could alternatively be based on physical features combined with basic community data. A previous conservation survey of Northern Ireland has shown that habitats and their communities can be classified without as much data as is customarily collected in transect surveys. In the Scottish context there is a particular variety of shores meriting conservation on the west coast sealochs. So far no intertidal effects of fish fanning have been demonstrated on them. Seaweed harvesting is localised although it may need control in the longer term. It is suggested that a change in the approach to protect areas might enable such habitats to be given protection without necessarily pursuing all the biological survey possible in such diverse habitats. East coast shores and those of the Solway area are less well-known but merit further study.
The conservation of marine mammals in Scottish waters
Authors: Thompson Paul M.
Published: June 2019

Synopsis

Scottish coastal waters contain populations of both common and grey seals. In addition, the area is used by at least thirteen cetacean species. National and international agreements are in place which aim to protect these species. However, limited data on the ecology of marine mammals and on the threats which their populations face has prevented the implementation of an effective conservation strategy for marine mammals.

This paper reviews current information on the distribution, abundance and population dynamics of seals and cetaceans in Scottish waters. It then outlines the nature and likely extent of threats to these species from human impacts such as incidental killing, disturbance, pollution. Finally, conservation and management objectives for Scottish marine mammal populations are discussed, particularly in relation to international treaties which require the U.K. to provide adequate protection measures.
Marine fouling
Authors: Sell David
Published: June 2019

Synopsis

A comparison of macrofouling assemblages on offshore structures in the North Sea has revealed some similarity in their general characteristics, with a predominance in climax communities of relatively few species, such as the plumose anemone Metridium senile (L.) and the soft coral Alcyonium digitatum L., covering large proportions of the substratum. Specific geographical differences in community composition, diversity and successional development have been identified, however, and these are discussed in relation to environmental conditions and larval dispersal. In practical terms, the conservation of offshore fouling communities depends upon the fates of structures supporting these assemblages. Since the U.K.'s approach to platform decommissioning could ultimately involve the in situ toppling of structures in sea depths greater than 100 m, there would appear to be little threat to the long-term existence of offshore habitats for deep-water fouling assemblages. Moreover, an abundance of largely uninvestigated habitats for fouling organisms exists on submerged wrecks and other man-made structures. Thus, there appears to be no basis for a conservation requirement in relation to the fouling communities on fixed structures in the North Sea.
Towards a marine nature conservation strategy
Authors: Baxter J. M. , Munford J. G.
Published: June 2019

The papers presented in this volume clearly demonstrate the biological richness of the marine environment of Scotland. The system is controlled by complex interactions between the various physical, chemical and biological components which together make up the whole. This apparent equilibrium is the result of the natural regulation of what is in fact a highly dynamic and potentially unstable system. The forces involved in applying this overall regulation however are as yet only very poorly understood.
Feeding Behavior of Modern Bryozoans
Authors: Winston Judith E.
Published: June 2019

“You are what you eat,” so the health food devotees claim, but if you are a bryozoan, “you are where you eat,” as well. Bryozoans are suspension feeders, dependent for their food on extracting edible particles from the water currents surrounding them. Most bryozoans are also sessile, unable to move from the place where the larva attached (except by that slow “movement” over the substratum that occurs by growth and decay of portions of the colony). Thus, colony morphology is inextricably linked to the way in which the colony processes water for food.
The Origin of the Brachiopods
Authors: Rowell A. J.
Published: June 2019

Brachiopods are characterized by being solitary, bivalved, bilaterally symmetrical coelomates. A ciliated, filament-bearing lophophore occupies much of the mantle cavity of all living representatives and functions as the principal food-gathering and respiratory organ of the animal. The coelom is divided into two principal spaces. The largest one is the posteriorly located metacoel that forms the body cavity and encloses most of the organs. The smaller mesocoel is the coelomic space inside the lophophore.
Biogeography and Community Analysis
Authors: Boucot Arthur J.
Published: June 2019

Interest in historical biogeography has risen tremendously since 1971. During the period 1971 to present there have been five important compilations of paleontologic information cast into an historical biogeographic framework (Gray and Boucot, 1979; Hallam, 1973; Hughes, 1973; Middlemiss, Rawson, and Newall, 1971; Ross, 1974). All of these volumes contain a certain amount of material dealing directly with brachiopod historical biogeography. More important, however, is the fact that all of them have a large number of papers devoted to shallow water, marine, benthic historical biogeography of organisms other than brachiopods, which provides a useful comparative background for future efforts in brachiopod historical biogeography. It is clear that efforts in historical biogeography are finally beginning to form a more routine part of the overall paleontologic effort. However, at the present time we still lack a really uniform, reasonably agreed upon, biogeographic framework for the Phanerozoic. This means that we have differing biogeographic terminologies for the basic units. There is no agreed upon definition of how to define the commonly used heirarchy, realm, region, province, subprovince–some prefer to do it with percentages of genera, some by considering families, still others by important presences or absences, or by mixtures of these approaches. One also quickly becomes aware of the fact that there is a confusing, commonly overlapping nomenclature applied to the same and different biogeographic units. For example, for much of Paleozoic time there is a Southern Hemisphere cold or cool water biogeographic unit termed Atlantic in the Cambrian, Atlantic, Mediterranean, Proto-Tethyan or Malvinokaffric in the Ordovician, Malvinokaffric in the Silurian and Devonian, and Gondwana in the Permian-Carboniferous. The warmer water units of the Paleozoic may also be considered in this time successive, confusing manner. It will probably be another decade or so before we have gained enough experience, by making all the conceivable types of mistakes, in the naming of Phanerozoic biogeographic units to enable us to come up with the most universally useful set of terms for the realms, regions, provinces and subprovinces. The fact that some realms begin their history as subprovinces and then “evolve” into realms further complicates the issue. The fact that some biogeographic units become extinct must also be considered.
Paleozoic Foraminifera - Fusulinids
Authors: Ross Charles A.
Published: June 2019

Fusulinacea are an extinct superfamily of small to large, to very laurge, calcareous Foraminiferida. They were entirely marine sind made their first appearance near the end of Early Carboniferous time (Text-fig. 1). They thrived during Middle and Late Carboniferous and Permian time. During that 100 million year existence, they evolved more than 150 genera and more than 6000 species before starting a decline in the later part of the Permicm and finally becoming extinct near the end of that period. Members of the Fusulinacea became giants, typically reaching 1 cm or more in length, and some became enormous giants, reaching 4 and 5 cm in length in the mid-Permian, and a few as much as 10 cm! Not bad for a single celled organism. Fusulinaceans are usually large enough that field geologists can spot them quickly in their stratigraphic units.
Living Mammals and the Fossil Record
Authors: Kirsch John A. W.
Published: June 2019

Commonly chapters by paleontologists are included in books about a particular group otherwise written by neontologists; it is much rarer that the situation is reversed, and I am conscious of the heavy responsibility imposed by my charge to suggest why paleontologists should pay some attention to living mammals. Most of us accept that the past is the key to the present, but here I must justify inverting the aphorism. A few years ago such an attempt, particularly as it related to the phylogeny of mammals, would have seemed arrogant; and while a number of molecular evolutionists might privately have held the view expressed in the epigraph above, I think few paleontologists would have agreed.
Whales, Dolphins and Porpoises: Origin and Evolution of the Cetacea
Authors: Barnes Lawrence G.
Published: June 2019

The order Cetacea was the earliest, and is the most diverse mammalian group to adapt to a marine existence. The first fossil whales appear in the fossil record in the Middle Eocene. Interestingly, cetaceans developed in some ways that are parallel to earlier marine reptiles and appear to have filled some of their niches. Some cetaceans later re-adapted to fresh water.
Rodentia: Extraordinary Diversification of a Morphologically Distinctive and Stereotyped Order
Authors: Jacobs Louis L.
Published: June 2019

The defining characteristic of the mammalian order Rodentia is a pair of continually growing incisors (Figure 1). There are rodents that scamper, hop, burrow, swim, and glide; that eat seeds, grass, nuts, insects, and worms; that live in the tropics, arctic, and temperate regions, in, on, or above the surface of the earth; in desert, grassland, savannah, and forest, but all are easily recognized by the incisors and correlated features. The lower incisors grow as helices approximating arcs. The upper incisor represents a relatively larger arc of a smaller circle than the lower incisor, which is a smaller arc of a larger circle. The root of each incisor is far back in the jaw. Enamel is essentially restricted to the labial surface of the incisors and comprises two layers. The wear of lower incisors against uppers, the distribution of enamel, the relative hardness of enamel versus dentine, and continual growth results in the maintenance of a sharp chisel edge. Thus, the gnawing incisors are primary food-gathering organs for rodents, but can also function in a number of other ways, such as in digging or as forceps.
Ovulation rate and embryo survival in Icelandic ewes
Authors: Hanrahan J.P. , Adalsteinsson S. , Thorgeirsson S. , Thorsteinsson S.S. , Eythorsdottir E.
Published: June 2019

Icelandic sheep, the only breed in Iceland, belongs to the North European short-tailed group of sheep which includes the Finnish Landrace and Swedish Landrace breeds (Adalsteinsson, 1970). The breed was brought to Iceland during the settlement period (870-930 AD) and it is believed that there has been little if any genetic introduction from outside the country during the last 200 years. The average litter size is about 1.7 with a remarkably low incidnce (˂1.5%) of triplets. The conception rate to a single cycle in the absence of synchronisation is reputedly greater than 90%. There is also evidence for the presence of a gene (Thoka gene) with a large effect on litter size in certain flocks (Jonmundsson and Adalsteinsson, 1985). The low incidence of triplet births and the apparently high conception rate suggest that the distribtuion of ovulation rate and the level of embryo survival may be different from those of typical British breeds.
Direct intrauterine versus cervical insemination:- effects on egg recovery and fertilization in superovulated ewes
Authors: Robinson J. J. , Wallace J. M. , Aitken R. P.
Published: June 2019

The problem of partial or complete failure of fertilization following cervical insemination in superovulated ewes submitted for embryo transfer can largely be overcome by depositing semen directly into the uterine lumen. However this technique, when carried out by mid-line laparotomy in superovulated ewes is associated with a significant reduction in ovum recovery (Trounson & Moore, 1974; Boland & Gordon, 1978). Although the recent introduction of laparoscopic intrauterine (IU) insemination has now removed the need for major surgery when inseminating superovulated ewes its use in non-superovulated ewes often results in a slight depression in litter size (McKelvey, Robinson, Aitken & Henderson, 1985). Such results imply that it too may reduce embryo recovery rates. Indeed our initial experience with the widespread use of the laparoscopic technique to inseminate superovulated ewes, although devoid of proper conventionally-inseminated controls, gave disappointingly low values for embryo recovery.

The present study was carried out therefore to determine the effect of direct intrauterine versus natural cervical insemination on egg recovery and fertilization rates in ewes superovulated using porcine FSH or PMSG and GnRH.
Genetic estimates for growth and carcass traits of pigs from closed herds on restricted feeding
Authors: Haley C.S. , Gu Y. , Thompson R.
Published: June 2019

The major components of economic performance in pigs - growth rate, feed conversion ratio and carcass merit - have been the targets of selection for a number of years in the closed herds of breeding companies. Over the past 20 years substantial progress has been made for these traits. Declining fatness in closed herds may lead to a decline in the genetic variation for growth and carcass traits, and thus reduced opportunities for selection. This could arise either as genetic variation is exhausted in closed lines, or as physiological selection limits are approached. In this study genetic variation in closed lines with a history of selection for growth and carcass traits was investigated.

The data were collected from two closed lines between 1979 and 1985 by the Cotswold Pig Development Company Ltd. The two lines were housed on a single farm in the same environment and had a history of selection based upon an index of growth rate and fat depths. There were 167 sires with 4722 male and 5386 female progeny in line A, a synthetic breed based largely upon the Landrace breed, and 164 sires with 4160 male and 3887 female progeny in line B, derived from the Large White breed.
Phenotypic and genetic variation for ovulation rate in Cambridge sheep
Authors: Hanrahan J.P.
Published: June 2019

The Cambridge is a highly prolific composite breed derived mainly from the Clun Forest (53%) and Finnish Landrace (25%) breeds with minor contributions from ten other breeds (Owen et al 1980; Owen, 1982). Ovulation rate in Cambridge ewes is characterised by high variability (range 2-13; CV = 0.55) and high repeatability (r = 0.86) between years (Hanrahan and Owen, 1985). These observations suggest the segregation of a gene with a large effect on ovulation rate. Further investigations of variation in ovulation rate have been undertaken based on a small flock of Cambridge ewes and crossbred progeny of six Cambridge rams.

Based on a single measurement of ovulation rate in October, 1983 on Cambridge ewes in the flock of University College of North Wales (UCNW) nine ewes were selected and imported to Ireland, together with four ram lambs, in August, 1984. The ewes chosen were those with the highest ovulation rate of those available (mean = 7.9) and the ram lambs were selected from dams with the highest ovulation rate (mean = 7.0). One additional ram lamb was purchased in 1985 from a private breeder in Northern Ireland who had purchased the parents from the UCNW flock.
The effect of compound level and silage quality on the performance of October calving dairy cows
Authors: Davies O D
Published: June 2019

With the introduction of milk quotas, a greater emphasis was placed on reducing input costs in milk production systems. This has led to a reduction in compound feed usage and a greater dependance on home produced forage. The objective of this trial was to examine the effects upon silage intake, milk yield, milk quality and cow performance of feeding a flat rate of 3 or 6 kg of a 160 g/kg crude protein, cereal based compound feed to October calving Friesian dairy cows receiving ad libitum grass silage harvested either during mid May or early June.

In each of two years, forty multiparous, October calving Friesian dairy cows were used in a 2 x 2 factorial design experiment to examine the effects of feeding two levels of compound feed as a supplement to grass silage harvested at two cutting dates.

In each year silage was made from primary growths of late flowering perennial ryegrass swards harvested from the same fields either during mid May (H) or about fourteen days later in early June (L). The herbage was cut using a disc mower/conditioner, and left in the swath for about 24 hours prior to harvesting with a precision chop forage harvester.
1992 and the UK livestock sector: An overview
Authors: Young N A
Published: June 2019

The European Community's plan to create a single European market by the end of 1992 emphasises that this will be achieved when the Community has done away with physical, technical and fiscal barriers to trade. Physical barriers refer to frontier controls on goods and persons (eg customs, animal and plant health checks, transport restrictions). Fiscal barriers comprise all obstacles and significant distortions among member states that derive from differences in the rates of both VAT and excise duty. Any other obstacles are categorised as technical barriers (eg food compositional laws, additive regulations).
‘1992 - Implications for the UK dairy industry’
Authors: Jones David
Published: June 2019

The paper examines the implications of the completion of the EEC Single Internal Market by 1992 for the UK Dairy Industry. Four areas of change are considered, namely; physical, monetary, technical and cultural.

The paper deals with the development of trade in milk and dairy products since the UK's accession to the European Community and contemplates the changes to trade patterns that might develop post 1992.
Protection of proteins from degradation in the rumen by heating in the presence of sugars
Authors: Wallace R. J.
Published: June 2019

Heat and aldehyde treatments have been widely used to protect proteins from degradation in the rumen, and conditions that lead to an undegradable, but still digestible, product (bypass protein; BP) have been determined. The problem with these treatments is that the conditions that are used are quite severe, and damage to amino acids, particularly lysine, occurs. Excessive treatment can also yield an indigestible product. Recently, an alternative method involving the heating of soybean meal under milder conditions (150°C, 1 h) in the presence of glucose, fructose, xylose or lactose (non-enzymatic browning) was shown to yield a product high in UDP, but in which the lysine was predicted to remain available to the host animal [1-3].

In the present experiments, casein was used as a homogeneous model substrate to investigate how wide a range of conditions can be used for effective treatment of proteins with sugars. Although casein is atypical in that it is one of the most rapidly degraded proteins available, the results point to a versatility in the sugar treatment process that will enable different sugars to be used according to the type of process available. Preliminary experiments with soybean meal suggested that an effective way of optimising this effect may be to encapsulate the protein supplement with a sugar-protein mix.
Contribution of palatability to differences in the intake of ground and pelleted roughages by sheep
Authors: Hovell F. D. DeB , Rayner D. V. , Kyle D. J. , Miller S. J. , Clark G. H.
Published: June 2019

Previous studies have shown a good correlation between the degradation characteristics of roughages as measured by the in sacco nylon bag technique, and their voluntary intake by sheep (Hovell et al. 1986), and cattle (Wheeler et al. 1979; Ørskov et al. 1988). The greater intakes of better roughages are associated with a greater outflow of undegraded residues from the rumen. We have also found that even when the roughages were ground to a particle size small enough to leave the rumen without further comminution, the differences in intake between good and poor remained. Thus the differences in intake were not entirely due to material degraded in the rumen, but were associated with differences in the outflow of undegraded residues from the rumen, and therefore some animal factor appeared to be involved. The greater outflow of undegraded residues of the more degradable roughages appeared not to be mediated by the contractile behaviour of the reticulo-rumen (Hovell et al. 1987; 1988).
A comparison of near infra-red reflectance spectroscopy with three in vitro digestibility methods to predict digestibility in vivo in cereal straws
Authors: Givens D I , Everington Jeannie M , Baker C K
Published: June 2019

There have been many attempts to use the measurement of cell wall fractions to predict the digestibility in vivo of untreated and alkali treated straws (see far example Sundstøl et al, 1978; Reid and Ørskov, 1987). All these attempts have shown this approach to have very low predictive ability for straws. Accordingly extensive use has been made of digestibility measurements in vitro using either rumen fluid (eg Sundstøl et al, 1978) or cellulase type enzymes (eg Jewell et al, 1986).

Whilst in vitro methods appear to be useful predictors of digestibility in straws, they are slow and relatively expensive. The work reported here has compared their predictive power with that of near infra-red reflectance spectroscopy (NIR).

A total of 123 cereal straws were used. These included 54 wheat, 43 barley and 4 oat straws all untreated and the 9 wheat, 9 barley and 4 oat straws oven-treated with ammonia previously described by Mason et al (1988).
Gut-active growth enhancers - probiotics and antibiotics
Authors: Armstrong D.G. , Parker D.S.
Published: June 2019

Reference is first made to antibiotics and relates to the use of low, sub-therapeutic levels of such products given daily in the feed over long periods of time. EEC legislation has followed UK policy in restricting their use as growth enhancers almost exclusively to those of non-therapeutic use in man. In their role as growth enhancers their inclusion in the feed results in increases in liveweight gain and/or feed conversion efficiency and thus increase the efficiency of production. In the EEC it has been calculated that the benefit of using growth promoting antibiotics saved the equivalent at 1982 prices of 480 x 10 e.c.u. There would be some additional benefit from reduced incidence of disease in certain cases. Since the early 1950's, when antibiotics were first introduced as growth enhancers, to the present time there have been numerous scientific publications concerning their efficacy. Thus, from experiments involving many thousands of poultry and of pigs the following values have been given relating to percentage weight gain in poultry and pigs respectively 5.0 ± 0.6 and 6.5 ± 0.5; corresponding values for increase in feed conversion efficiency are 3.5 ± 0.4 and 4.1 ± 0.04; all four values quoted are percentage increases over controls. Relating to ruminants, use of monensin, an ionphore antibiotic at levels of 25-33mg kg-1 feed in 35 trials, resulted in increases over controls in weight gain and feed conversion efficiency of 5.2% and 8.65% respectively.
The Endocrine control of fibre growth and shedding in cashmere goats
Authors: Lynch P. , Russel A.J.F.
Published: June 2019

The coat of the cashmere goat consists of two types of fibre, a coarse outer coat of guard hair produced by the primary skin follicles and a fine undercoat of cashmere (˂18.5 microns diameter) produced by the secondary follicles. In the spring both the primary and secondary follicles shed their fibres and a sparse coat of mainly guard hair is maintained over the summer. Many temperate mammalian species display photoperiodically regulated changes in the pelage which alter the insulating properties of the coat and prepare the animal for large variations in ambient temperature. The timing of the moult can be manipulated by changes in photoperiod (Allain et al, 1986) or treatment with melatonin or prolactin. Smith et al (1987) demonstrated that melatonin treatment from August in the male Blue-fox prevented both the onset of the moult and the spring rise in prolactin. In the Djungarian hamster prolactin treatment induced the spring moult and the suppression of prolactin by bromoergocriptine inhibited the moult (Duncan and Goldman, 1984).
Lamb performance on swedes supplemented with barley or soya bean meal
Authors: Dingwall W.S. , Vipond J.E. , Brown H.E. , Hunter E.A.
Published: June 2019

Supplementation of finishing lambs fed swedes in situ has been traditionally achieved with cereals or 14% CP compound feeds. Crowing of winter cereals has reduced the availability of protein-rich grass runbacks and on most farms where lambs are consuming mainly swede bulbs there is likely to be a daily deficit of RDP of around 16 g RDP/day (0.15 of total requirement). Recent MLURI work (Milne pers comm) indicates that the normal RDP:ME ratio of ruminant diets of 7.8:1 may be inadequate in the unusual conditions of high rumen turnover rates and rapid fermentation associated with root feeding. Rowett feed evaluation work indicates higher ME values for swedes than previous estimates increasing energy:protein imbalance.

This trial had two objectives; to study response to supplementation of swedes with soya bean meal compared to barley and to study whether holding lambs for 3 months inside on a straw based diet prior to finishing was an effective alternative to holding lambs on autumn grass outside. The potential advantages of this alternative are reduced competition for autumn grass between breeding ewes and finishing stock and better utilisation of sheep housing and arable by-products.
A Comparison of naked oats and barley in a silage-based diet for dairy cows
Authors: Martin P.A. , Roberts D.J.
Published: June 2019

Of the cereals grown in the UK oats, and especially the recently developed naked oats, contain relatively large amounts of C18 fatty acids. Consistent with this, in a series of change-over type experiments substitution of oats or naked oats for barley in dairy cows’ rations reduced the proportion of saturated fatty acids and increased that of monounsaturated fatty acids in milk fat (Martin & Thomas, 1988a, b). These results indicated the inclusion of oats in cows’ diets to be a means of increasing the appeal of milk and milk products to the health-conscious consumer. The present experiment was conducted to assess the likely potential for dietary manipulation of milk fat composition using naked oats under commercial farming conditions.

Thirty-two Friesian cows and heifers were used in a continuous design feeding trial which extended from week 3 to week 18 of lactation. The animals were paired on the basis of calving date, lactation number and pre-trial milk yield and, within pairs, were allocated at random to one of two diets.
The Effect of two different protein sources in the diet upon the incidence and prevalance of lameness in dairy cattle
Authors: Logue D N , Lawson A , Roberts D J , Hunter E A
Published: June 2019

The importance of lameness in dairy cattle in UK in terms of its economic consequences and welfare considerations is well documented (Russel and others, 1982). While such epidemiological work has identified factors of importance in the aetiology of the various conditions associated with lameness it has been less successful in apportioning their relative importance, particularly for those conditions affecting the hoof. A series of experiments has been conducted at the West of Scotland College over the period 1983 to 1989 mainly investigating the relationship of nutrition and lameness. In one of these Manson and Leaver (1988) found a significant difference in the prevalence of lameness between two groups of cattle fed complete diets containing either 16.1 or 19.8% crude protein. They also found a significant increase in mean locomotion score (LS) and commented that further studies were needed to understand the dietary processes by which the hoof of the cow was predisposed to such problems.

The objective of this experiment was to investigate the influence of the type of protein source in the concentrate upon the locomotion of the cows, the incidence and prevalence of lameness and finally on hoof hardness, shape, growth and wear.
Prediction of voluntary Intake of grass silage by growing cattle using ridge regression
Authors: Rook A. J. , Gill M. , Dhanoa M. S.
Published: June 2019

Due to collinearity among the independent varlates, intake prediction models based on least squares multiple regression are likely to predict poorly with independent data. In addition, the regression coefficients are sensitive to small changes in the estimation data and tend not to reflect causal relationships expected from the results of controlled experimentation. Ridge regression (Hoerl and Kennard, 1970) allows the estimation of new coefficients for the independent variables which overcome these effects of collinearity. In order to assess the usefulness of the method for Intake prediction, ordinary least squares (OLS) models, obtained using backward elimination of variables, and ridge regression models were constructed from the same data and then tested with independent data.

Estimation data consisted of results of experiments of IGAP, Hurley and Greenmount College of Agriculture in which growing cattle were individually fed grass silage ad-libitum with or without supplementary feeds. Two subsets of the estimation data were used. Subset A included 395 animals and 36 silages; subset B included 192 animals and 16 silages and was for Hurley data only.
Prediction of voluntary intake of conserved forages by cattle and sheep from degradability characteristics determined using synthetic fibre bags in sheep
Authors: Miller E.L. , Oddoye E.O.K.
Published: June 2019

Hovell et al. (1986) proposed that degradation characteristics of forages, as measured in nylon bags, may have useful application in predicting voluntary intakes. They reported intakes of four hays by sheep were more closely related to the potential degradability of forage dry matter (DM) than to in vivo The present work was undertaken to examine these relationships with forages and with both young growing cattle and sheep.

Seven forages were prepared with the objective of providing material wide range of voluntary intake. The forages were:

(i)WS, wheat straw

(ii)AWS, round-baled WS wrapped in 4 layers of overlapping plastic sheet (Silawrap; Volac Ltd), injected with 32% aqueous ammonia at the rate of 40kg/1000kg DM

(iii)H1, first cut ryegrass hay

(iv)H2, second cut ryegrass hay from the same field as (iii)

(v)S2, 50% DM silage, baled and wrapped with Silawrap, prepared from the same crop as H2

(vi)ES2, the same crop as S2 sprayed with a mixed enzyme preparation (Deezyme, Finnish Sugar Company Ltd.) at 0.81/tonne immediately before baling and wrapping with Silawrap

(vii)AS2, S2 treated with aqueous ammonia in the wrapped bale as for AWS. All forages were fed in the long form except WS which was coarsely chopped through a straw chopper without any retaining screen into approximately 7cm lengths.
Effect of soluble constituents of silage on oro-pharyngeal intake by sheep
Authors: Buchanan-Smith J. G.
Published: June 2019

It is well known that the process of ensiling forage has a deleterious effect on intake. It is likely that the soluble constituents, produced during the fermentation, are responsible for a major part of this effect, although studies of infusion of constituents into the retlculo-rumen have shown that there Is no simple post-ingestive mechanism. Studies on feeding behaviour have shown that ruminants eat silage more slowly than unensiled forage and from this it has been concluded that ruminants may be aversive to the taste, smell or sight of silage. The question, however, of whether is this aversion to silage could explain reduced intake, when silage is the only food offered, remains. To provide a more definitive test of this question, soluble constituents were added to a high-quality low dry matter silage in combinations and levels typical of those reported in the literature. The effects of these additions on intake by sham-fed sheep was measured.
Long-term performance and body composition of sows given differing levels of feed intake during pregnancy and lactation
Authors: Lee Pauline A , Close W H , Wood J
Published: June 2019

The present experiment was designed to investigate the influence of variations in energy intake during both pregnancy and lactation on changes in body weight, backfat and body composition of the sow after four parities and the extent to which these may have influenced overall sow productivity.

The experiment has been designed in a 2 x 2 factorial arrangement involving two levels of feeding during both pregnancy and lactation. The feeding levels in pregnancy were planned to produce net maternal body weight gains of 30kg (H) and 10kg (L). At each of these, two feeding regimes were applied during a 3 week lactation, one being at a conventional level (H) and the other 25% below this (L). The experiment thus involved four groups of animals given different levels of feeding during both pregnancy and lactation, designated: High-High (HH), High-Low (HL), Low-High (LH), Low-Low (LL). No creep feed was provided to the piglets during the suckling period. At the start of the experiment the gilts weighed 115kg live weight with a backfat thickness at the P2 position of 18mm. They remained on the same treatment throughout four parities and were slaughtered after weaning their fourth litters when the carcasses were retained for analysis. Data are presented from 66 sows; 17(HH), 17(HL), 16(LH), 16(LL).
Farrowing site preference by sows
Authors: Arey D S , Petchey A M , Fowler V R
Published: June 2019

At farrowing time, sows are normally confined in barren environments which prevent the performance of normal behaviour patterns. It has been argued that both the sows welfare and productivity may suffer as a result of these conditions, (Vestergaard and Hansen, 1984). Investigations into the feasibility of an alternative system in which the sows are not restricted have therefore been initiated. The main objective of the present study was to establish design criteria for voluntary accessed farrowing pens which will attract sows by providing them with their preferred environmental requirements.

Previous observations, not reported here, were made of the pre-farrowing behaviour of sows housed individually in large pens which contained a deep sand floor and a straw dispenser. All the sows showed nest building behaviour which culminated in the production of a recognisable nest. Typically they had the following characteristics: a shallow depression; a straw lining and a nest rim which formed a low barrier around the nest. The experiments described here were designed to establish the preferences of the peri-parturient sow for preformed lying areas which incorporated these features.
Social activity and feeder use of a dynamic group of 40 sows using a sow-operated computerised feeder
Authors: Hunter E.J. , Edwards S.A. , Simmins P.H.
Published: June 2019

Keeping sows in large groups necessitates ‘dynamic’ grouping, that is, the removal and addition of sows at regular intervals to a group of more or less constant size. However, the lack of stability of dynamic groups raises questions about the nature of the dominance hierarchy and the pattern of feeder use within them. Behaviour and feeder use was observed in a dynamic group of 35-40 sows by both direct observation and video-recording over 13 feed cycles. An initial 4-day recording was made of a stable group of 40 sows to evaluate each sow's feeder use before removal/addition began. On three occasions at weekly intervals five sows were removed and five trained sows added to the group after feeding. Recording covered each day before addition, the day of addition and the following day. Direct observation was carried out for 8 hours on the days before each addition and for 6.5 hours on the following days, starting within 20 minutes of sows being added to the group. The 25 sows remaining in the group throughout removal/addition (‘resident’ sows) were individually marked and observed. Each batch of five sows added was marked as a group and each groups’ feeder use and social activity was recorded.
A Model relating litter size to ovulation rate and embryo survival in pigs
Authors: Hanrahan J.P.
Published: June 2019

The number of pigs weaned per sow per year has increased substantially in recent years due mainly to changes in husbandry with probably some contribution from breed substitution and crossbreeding (Haley et al 1986). Because of emerging difficulties in relation to responses to continued selection for leaness and reassessment of the economic importance of prolificacy in pigs there is considerable interest in selection for increased litter size. It is generally agreed that the heritability of litter size is about 0.1 and attempts to increase litter size by within population selection have not been particularly successful. On the other hand selection for increased ovulation rate in pigs has been effective but the correlated change in litter size has been small. This apparent failure to achieve significant correlated response in litter size has been attributed to a negative genetic association between ovulation rate and embryo survival. However, there is very little information on the magnitude of genetic variation in embryo survival or its relationship with ovulation rate.
The Response of silage-fed scottish blackface lambs to different levels of energy and protein supplementation with or without a store period
Authors: Povey Gillian M. , Webster G.M. , Weekes T.E.C.
Published: June 2019

In the past, the use of silage-based diets for finishing lambs indoors has met with limited success. Good quality silage is required to maximize voluntary intake but liveweight gains on silage alone are still generally low (Reed, 1979). While cereal supplements have been shown to improve lamb performance at the expense of silage intake, additional protein may have a stimulatory effect on both (Yilala and Bryant, 1985). This trial was therefore designed to investigate the performance responses of silage-fed hill lambs to increasing levels of whole barley and fishmeal supplementation and to examine the effect of a store period on these responses.

Two hundred and forty Scottish Blackface wether lambs, 5 months of age with a liveweight of 26.5 ± 0.18 kg (mean ± s.e.), which had all been reared as singles, were selected for the trial. On housing in September all lambs were kept under artificial lighting conditions of 14th light : 10h dark to remove the confounding effect of daylength.
Rumen microbial detoxification as a possible explanation for the tolerance of lambs to brassica derived glucosinolates
Authors: A.J. Duncan  , J.A. Milne
Published: June 2019

Although the nutritive value of forage brassicas for lambs has been found to be high, as described by digestibility values of approximately 0.8 or higher, performance of lambs finished on these crops has been low and unpredictable. One of the possible reasons for such low and variable performance is low voluntary food intake which has been attributed to the presence of anti-nutritive factors such as SMCO and glucosinolates in the vegetative material. Glucosinolates undergo enzymic hydrolysis following chewing and the addition of saliva to produce a number of toxic metabolites including isothiocyanates, vinyloxazolidine-thiones and nitriles. (Fenwick et al, 1983). Historically, isothiocyanates were considered to be the major glucosinolate hydrolysis products (Kjaer, 1960); however more recent studies have shown nitriles to predominate under natural conditions such as those occuring during plant autolysis (Cole, 1976). The aim of the present study was to determine whether glucosinolates, following their hydrolysis to nitrile compounds in vivo might be responsible for low intake among lambs offered forage brassicas.
Ewe and lamb performance on perennial ryegrass and perennial ryegrass plus white clover swards under controlled sward heights
Authors: Vipond J.E. , Swift G. , FitzSimons J. , McClelland T.H. , Milne J.A. , Hunter E.A.
Published: June 2019

Lamb performance at grass falls in July/August on upland farms. Allowing sward height to rise has been recognised as having an amoreilating effect. The objective of this trial was to determine the influence of both sward quantity (sward height) and sward quality (sward type) on ewe and lamb performance from mid April to September. An associated objective was the evaluation of the use of clover to replace nitrogen fertiliser.
The integration of a ewe flock with the dairy herd
Authors: O'Riordan E.G.
Published: June 2019

The benefits of mixed grazing sheep and cattle have been reviewed by Nolan and Connolly (1977). Sheep performance was improved in practically all comparisons and cattle perfomance in the majority of reports. As dairy producers manage their milk quota through various efficiency options, surplus land may become available for alternative use. Based on results from other sheep/dry stock studies the introduction of sheep onto the dairy farm, to utilise surplus/waste grass throughout the year, should lead to increased pasture utilisation and improved overall farm efficiency. The sheep enterprise may be established as a distinct unit and strategically used to exploit feed surpluses on the dairy unit throughtout the year. Alternatively, the full integration of a sheep enterprise with the dairy cows to exploit the benefits of mixed species grazing, may be considered. This latter approach is being evaluated and this report covers the first year of an on-going study.
A system for store lamb finishing from roots involving the slimming of overfat lambs and ad libitum concentrate feeding of underfinished lambs
Authors: Waterhouse A , Roger Louise C
Published: June 2019

Traditional systems of finishing store lambs from roots are unpredictable and inflexible. Lamb genotype, sex and initial weight significantly affect potential performance and target weights for slaughter at currently fashionable levels of fat cover. Lamb performance can easily be affected by climate. Frequently, producers fail to match crop resources to lamb grazing due to the unpredictable finishing rates. Planning of sales especially to meet marketing contracts is also difficult. Problems are most significant with hill breed lambs and smaller crossbred lambs both which need considerable gains to achieve slaughter condition and weight. With heavy ‘forward’ stores overfat lambs can be a problem.

Careful management, appropriate supplementation and regular handling all help to reduce problems but in many situations where labour and handling facilities are limited these inputs also increase costs and difficulties.
A comparison of barley and molassed sugar beet feed for saanen goats in early lactation
Authors: Sutton J D , Mowlem A
Published: June 2019

In comparison of barley and molassed sugar beet feed (SBF), as the principal energy sources in the concentrates, for milk production by dairy cows, only small differences have been established with diets containing conventional proportions of forage and concentrates. No similar comparison using dairy goats appear to have been made and the purpose of the present study was to compare the effects of these two energy sources on hay intake and milk production by British Saanen goats.

Twenty-nine multiparous Saanen goats were allocated to one of two concentrate types one month before kidding. The concentrates were based on barley (B) (690 kg rolled barley, 310 kg soyabean meal/tonne) or molassed SBF (700 kg SBF, 300 kg soyabean meal/tonne) and were pelleted. They were offered at 0.45 kg/day for 4 weeks before kidding, increasing to 1 kg/day by day 15 after kidding. Chopped lucerne hay was offered through Calan gates at 1.5 kg/day before kidding and ad libitum thereafter. The goats consuming the SBF concentrates were given a high-phosphorus mineral supplement. Feed was offered twice dally and refusals were taken once dally. The goats were milked twice daily and samples were taken on two consecutive milkings weekly. Live weight was measured twice weekly.
Reproductive and kid performance of a newly established feral goat herd being graded up for cashmere production
Authors: Roger Louise C , Gunn G J , Waterhouse A
Published: June 2019

Interest in farming goats for cashmere production has recently arisen, both as a means of farm diversification and, through goats grazing preferences, to utilise previously under exploited resources on hill farms.

A herd of 160 feral does of Irish and Scottish origin was established at the West of Scotland College's Kirkton Unit in June 1987 to investigate the potential for cashmere production from goats on a hill sheep farm. The Irish goats are of mixed ancestry with obvious dairy crossbreds in addition to many of more feral phenotype. The Scottish feral does came as an established group but proved excitable and difficult to handle. Whenever goats were grouped together for handling or at feeding points there was considerable fighting and other agonistic behaviour. A year later the level of this has reduced.

One hundred and fifty eight does were divided into four groups and oestrus synchronised (goats sponges 45 mg progesterone supplied by Intervet). These were then artificially inseminated by laparoscope in two, two day sessions a week apart (21/10, 22/10, 29/10 and 30/10).
A comparison of consumer perceptions of goat and lamb meat
Authors: Kirk J.A. , Brunton S. , Owen D.R. , Cooper R.A.
Published: June 2019

Carruthers (1986) estimated the United Kingdom goat population to be between 100,000 and 150,000 head. Ryder (1986) stated that U.K. goat numbers are increasing at twice the rate of the sheep population. In the U.K. goats are kept primarily for milk and fibre production. As a result of the reputedly small market for goat meat In the U.K. producers are disadvantaged as they are unable to rear and sell their male kids as an additional source of income. The net result of this is that an estimated 55,000 male kids are culled at birth.

Naude and Hofmeyer (1981) reported that carcasses of most goat breeds tend to be leaner than of sheep breeds. With the increasing consumer demand for lean meat it may well be that the goat meat is able to compete for the sheep meat market.

This study aims to reveal some of the factors which might affect the demand for goat meat by comparison of the eating qualities of lamb and goat.