bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The grazing ecology of hill and upland swards
Authors: Hodgson J. , Grant Sheila A. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractThe grazing ecology of hill and upland swards is discussed in terms of (a) the influence of sward characteristics (species composition; plant maturity and morphology; canopy structure) on the ingestive behaviour, diet selection and herbage intake of sheep and cattle, (b) the reciprocal influence of grazing activity upon the species balance of natural and sown plant communities and (c) the importance of plant responses in limiting the impact of variations in grazing managements upon the net rate of herbage production from sown swards. Emphasis is given to the importance of objective criteria of plant morphology and sward canopy structure both in understanding sward and animal responses to management manipulation and in applying the results of grazing studies in farming practice.
Prediction of the organic matter digestibility of forages in horses by the gas test method
Authors: Macheboeuf D. , Jestin M. , Andrieu J. , Martin-Rosset W. 
Published: June 2019

In horses, forages account for the greatest proportion of the diet (Micol and Martin-Rosset, 1995). As a result, the energy value of forages has to be determined very accurately to meet the horse requirements. In the UFC system (Horse Feed Unit) proposed by INRA (Martin-Rosset et al., 1994), the energy value of forages is closely related to organic matter digestibility (OMD).In ruminants, OMD has been related to the in vitro gas production after 24 h of fermentation of foodstuffs with rumen fluid (Menke et al., 1979). The prediction of OMD with the gas test method is less accurate than with the nylon bag method but better than prediction performed with in vitro method or from chemical composition of foods (Khazaal et al., 1993 and 1995).In the UFC system, three routine methods have been performed by our laboratory and proposed by INRA to predict routinely OMD of foodstuffs. OMD can be predicted either from chemical composition (Martin-Rosset et al., 1996a), by a pepsin cellulase method (Aufrère, 1982; Martin-Rosset et al., 1996b) or by near infra-red spectrometry (NIRS) (Andrieu et al., 1996).The gas test method was subjected to be adapted in horses for predicting OMD. The accuracy of the prediction with the gas test method was compared with the other routine methods.
Salmonella and food safety – why it matters for the British pig industry
Authors: Armstrong Derek 
Published: June 2019

SummaryThe production and marketing of safe, wholesome pork, bacon, ham and other pork products is of paramount importance to British farmers, processors, retailers, food service companies and those that supply them. It is not possible to guarantee the complete absence of bacteria in meat production. Most bacteria found on meat are harmless, but some can cause foodborne disease. Control processes to reduce or eliminate food safety risks are applied to every stage of the production and marketing chain from the farm to the consumer.Key approaches to reducing the risk of foodborne disease include: reduction of zoonotic pathogens in slaughter pigs; prevention of cross contamination during activities such as transport and slaughter; safe processing of foods underpinned by HACCP (Hazard Analysis Critical Control Point); safe handling and preparation of food in the retail and catering sectors, including the adoption of HACCP principles and effective enforcement; safe handling and preparation of food in the home and enhanced surveillance of foodborne disease to monitor effectiveness of controls.
The effect of docosahexaenoic acid supplementation of the maternal diet on the performance and behaviour of piglets
Authors: Edwards S.A. , Bulman C. , Breuer K. , O’Connell N.E. , Sneddon I.A. , Sutcliffe M.E.M. , Mercer J.T. , Rance K.A. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractThe objective of this experiment was to measure the effects of preand postnatal supplementation of sows with an algal source of docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) on the pre and post–weaning performance of their piglets. The experiment was of 2 x 2 factorial design, with DHA supplementation of the sow diet (3g DHA/kg feed) during the last 4 weeks of pregnancy and/or 4 weeks of lactation. There was a significant positive effect (P<0.05) of lactation DHA on weaning weight. Piglets from sows which had received DHA supplement in gestation were heavier throughout the post–weaning period than controls (P<0.05), as were piglets whose mothers received DHA in lactation (P<0.05). When age and weight at weaning were used as covariates in the model, the liveweight gain in week 1 and over the whole 26 day post–weaning period were significantly greater (P<0.05) for piglets from sows which had received DHA supplement in gestation. It is concluded that DHA supplementation of sow diets can improve piglet performance.
A comparative analysis of population characteristics of the competing progeny (within UK) of UK elite eventing sires and all competing event horses within the UK
Authors: Whitaker T C , Hill J 
Published: June 2019

A greater understanding of the population characteristics of sport horse populations is required to enable potential breed improvement programmes to be formulated correctly and be effective in their outcomes. To date limited research has been conducted into the UK sport horse population.A selected group of progeny (n=339) sired by elite eventing stallions was examined. In the context of this study elite sires were defined as those that were ranked 1-10 by total lifetime points won by competing progeny up to the end of 2000 (British Horse Database, 2000). Comparative analysis was undertaken between the selected group and all competing eventing horses in 2000 (n=9387) (British Horse Database, 2000). Data collected for both groups included, total lifetime points won at eventing and dressage and total lifetime money won at show jumping. Basic descriptive statistics were produced for each data set (Table 1). Product moment correlations were performed for all discipline areas (Table 2). Data transformation was applied using LOG+1(Hassenstein, Roehe, and Kalm, 1996).
Oocytes and assisted reproduction technology
Authors: Picton H.M. , Danfour M.A. , Coulthard H. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractA number of methods can now be used to store the female germ plasm from farm species. New assisted reproductive techniques such as ultrasound guided oocyte pickup, followed by the in vitro maturation of oocytes together with cryopreservation enable the collection and storage of germinal vesicle or metaphase II secondary oocytes and more practically embryos after in vitro fertilisation. Following freezing using equilibration or vitrification protocols, oocytes and embryos can be stored at liquid nitrogen temperatures for as long as required. Despite much research interest, the efficiency of secondary oocyte freezing is low and the developmental potential of stored oocytes is directly affected by the local cellular and hormonal environment during maturation, fertilisation and extended culture in vitro. An alternative strategy which avoids many of the technical difficulties associated with mature oocyte freezing may be to cryopreserve primordial oocytes in situ within ovarian cortex. This approach has the added advantage that it may also provide a means of conserving the oocytes of rare species and it can be used to bank cells obtained from postmortem tissue samples or species for which IVF protocols may not have been fully optimised. Although the methodology is still in its infancy, when ovarian cryopreservation is combined with autografting, xenografting, or follicle culture, ovarian tissue freezing has the potential to restore or extend the fertility of domestic animals so maximising their genetic potential.
Buying and selling the sport horse
Authors: Crossman G. K , Walsh R. E. 
Published: June 2019

AbstractThe sport horse industry in Great Britain is fragmented and serendipitous. However, there are many opportunities available for it to develop and grow. The research this paper is based upon was carried out in conjunction with British Breeding, to improve and develop the marketing of the British sport horse. The research was carried out through an online questionnaire (a paper version was also available) and semi-structured interviews. Both research methods contained questions aimed specifically at breeders or buyers, as well as general questions. Once the data had been collected it was analysed to discover where any trends, relationships or discrepancies existed between the groups. Recommendations were then formulated. Specifically, this paper considers the profiles of breeders and buyers of the sport horse, the reasons for breeding horses or ponies, the characteristics of horses valued by breeders and buyers and the methods of sale and purchase used. The significant difference between the horse purchase price of different categories of buyers, for example the leisure rider and professional rider, or eventers and show jumpers, are discussed. Profitability in relation to the reasons people breed horses or ponies is analysed. The definition of the sport horse is also examined. In conclusion, there is much work that needs to be completed to enable the sport horse industry in this country to be fully understood, from both the perspective of the breeder or producer and the buyer. However, there are opportunities available for the British sport horse industry to move forward.
Equine stereotypies and time budgets
Authors: Monk AS 
Published: June 2019

Time budget studies focus on the amount of time individual animals allocate to mutually exclusive activities. In the wild, horses’ behavioural patterns revolve around maintenance behaviour and reproduction (Forgacz 1999). They have evolved as nomadic, trickle feeding, prey animals. Hence, they don't necessarily suit the confines of a domestic environment where their “mutually exclusive activities” may include stereotypical behaviour.Various time budgeting studies have shown that “the behaviour of horses within the domestic management system was significantly different to that of the wild horses” (Forgacz, 1999). In one study domestic horses spent less time in motion, foraging or lying flat than wild horses (Forgacz, 1999). This accords with earlier studies, reported by Kiley-Worthington (1987), which show that wild horses graze for approximately 60% of their time. Even those in various forms of domestic management system, but given access to unrestricted forage, will tend to perform ingestive functions for around 47 - 57% of the time.
The geological and geomorphological setting of the Estuary and Firth of Clyde
Authors: Jardine W. Graham 
Published: June 2019

SynopsisIn late-Precambrian and early Palaeozoic times, the Clyde Sea Area lay at the junction of a major land mass and the Iapetus Ocean. Closure of the Ocean on its northwestern margin corresponded broadly with initiation of the Highland Boundary and Southern Uplands Faults and formation of southwestnortheast oriented basins of continental sedimentation. Northwest-southeast fractures of the Clyde Belt, along which the Northeast Arran and Southwest Arran troughs of the firth are emplaced, developed across the southwest-northeast Caledonoid grain in Carboniferous-Permian times. The firth and estuary began to assume their distinctive forms in Tertiary times. The area experienced several major glaciations during the Quaternary Period. Late Devensian effects are most distinct: overdeepening of the firth to depths exceeding — 160mOD; deposition of till and meltwater sediments up to 80 m in thickness. Clyde Beds, fossiliferous clays and silty sands up to 15 m in thickness, accumulated c. 13,150–10,000 BP in sub-arctic marine waters in the firth, estuary and Paisley embayment, and in the Lomond basin prior to the Loch Lomond Stadial. The Holocene marine transgression, which produced further modifications in shoreline position, e.g. in Ayrshire, the Paisley embayment and the Lomond basin, was followed by marine regression due to isostatic land rebound.
Zooplankton investigations in the Firth of Clyde
Authors: Adams J. A. 
Published: June 2019

SynopsisZooplankton investigations in the Firth of Clyde can be considered as starting in 1885, when the Fishery Board for Scotland built a laboratory at Tarbert and the Granton based Scottish Marine Station extended its studies to the west coast. The work of both groups, and their successors, waxed and waned, with a particularly active period starting in the early 1920s, when the Millport Station received government aid.Although the euphausiids Meganyctiphanes norvegica and Thysanoessa raschii are important in the deep waters around Arran and in Loch Fyne, in general, copepods are the most important pelagic
crustaceans. Of these Calaims occurs in enormous numbers in surface waters in May and June. Thereafter it is found mainly in deep waters such as those of Loch Fyne. Other abundant copepods are Pseudocalanus elongatus, Acarlia clausi and Oithona similis which are particularly characteristic of the area extending from Kilbrannan Sound via the east of Arran to the upper Firth of Clyde. In these latter areas the peak standing stock of the larger zooplankters (as caught by a 250μm mesh net) is about 5, occasionally 8, g dry weight per 100cum, occurring from April to July. The smaller zooplankters (as caught by a 68μm mesh net) add a further 1.3g dry weight per 100 cu m.
The ecology of macroalgae in the Firth of Clyde
Authors: Norton Trevor A. 
Published: June 2019

SynopsisThe distribution of seaweeds in the Firth of Clyde is described. The patterns of algal distribution are discussed in relation to propagule dispersal and recruitment, and the physiological ecology of the plants. Particular attention is given to the influence of biotic factors: competition, grazing by invertebrates and the effects of man.
Seaweed-associated animal communities in the Firth of Clyde, with special reference to the population biology of the amphipod Hyale nilssoni (Rathke)
Authors: Moore P. G. 
Published: June 2019

SynopisPresent knowledge of animal communities associated with the algae of the Firth of Clyde is briefly reviewed. New work is presented on Hyale nilssoni (Rathke), the commonest amphipod inhabiting high littoral seaweeds, which describes the life-history characteristics over three years of a population associated with Pelvetia. Seasonal changes in growth rate, sex ratio and breeding status are described. Fecundity is investigated and data on brood and egg sizes compared with populations from other latitudes. The dynamic equilibrium between the grazer (Hyale) and the grazed (Pelvetia) is described.
Use of the Clyde Estuary and Firth for the disposal of effluents
Authors: Haig A. J. N. 
Published: June 2019

SynopsisThe effluents from about half of Scotland's population and industry drain to the Clyde Estuary and Firth, where they cause a number of problems of contamination and pollution. This paper outlines historical aspects of urban growth, effluent production and disposal, pollution and pollution control. The sources, nature, quantities and main effects of effluents discharged are described, as is recent national and international legislation intended to prevent or control pollution. Reference is also made to the determination of licence conditions for effluent discharges by means of the Environmental Quality Objective/Environmental Quality Standard approach.
Bivalve Morphology and Function
Authors: Seilacher Adolf 
Published: June 2019

This part of our course builds on the assumption that evolutionary change, although being stochastic in principle, is channeled by external and internal constraints to such a degree that it becomes quasi-predictable – or at least understandable. On this basis it makes sense to use the old methods of comparative morphology in the new framework of constructional morphology (Seilacher, 1970) in order to recognize patterns and to interpret them as trends and evolutionary pathways. For such an approach, bivalves are particularly suited:1. they deviate little from a common design (for instance they never lost their shell).2. their preservable hard parts adequately reflect the developmental biography of each individual.3. their shell form expresses the compromise between developmental constraints and functional paradigm with little interference from soft part anatomy, physiology and biotic interactions.4. they are diversified enough to provide many examples of parallel adaptations for model testing, particularly if we include the fossil record.
On Betti numbers of flag complexes with forbidden induced subgraphs
Authors: ADIPRASITO KARIM , NEVO ERAN , TANCER MARTIN 
Published: June 2019

AbstractWe analyse the asymptotic extremal growth rate of the Betti numbers of clique complexes of graphs on n vertices not containing a fixed forbidden induced subgraph H.In particular, we prove a theorem of the alternative: for any H the growth rate achieves exactly one of five possible exponentials, that is, independent of the field of coefficients, the nth root of the maximal total Betti number over n-vertex graphs with no induced copy of H has a limit, as n tends to infinity, and, ranging over all H, exactly five different limits are attained.For the interesting case where H is the 4-cycle, the above limit is 1, and we prove a superpolynomial upper bound.
Effect of three day-time stocking rates for dairy cows offered silage overnight
Authors: Roberts D J , Leaver J D 
Published: June 2019

In a previous study (Phillips and Leaver, 1983) grass silage was offered indoors overnight to dairy cows which were set-stocked during the day. The intakes of herbage DM were high in spring and declined thereafter, with silage DM intakes showing the reverse trend. This suggested that a single daytime stocking rate could be practised throughout the grazing season if silage was available ad libitum as a buffer feed. In this experiment, three daytime stocking rates were compared.In a continuous design experiment lasting 24 weeks (17 April to 5 October 1983) 36 late winter calving Friesian dairy cows and heifers were housed and offered grass silage ad libitum overnight in a feeding passage. During the daytime the cows were set-stocked at 8, 10 or 12 cows/ha. Concentrates were fed at a level of 3 kg/day for weeks 1-16 and 22-24; 5 kg/day were fed for weeks 17-21.
A selection index for the beef industry
Authors: Steane D.E. , Cook G.L. , Allen D.M. 
Published: June 2019

The MLC has just completed a review of its beef breeding services,1) To evaluate the design of a selection index in which all records of performance could be combined into a single overall estimate of breeding values,2)To consider the organisational structure of breeding herds within which beef breeding services could be utilised most effectively.
Adrenal function in wether lambs implanted with trenbolone acetate, ostradiol or trenbolone acetate plus oestradiol
Authors: Sillence M. N. , Rodway R. G. , Redfern E. J. 
Published: June 2019

We have previously demonstrated that trenbolone acetate (TBA) treatment of female lambs and rats reduces both plasma glucocorticoid concentrations and the adrenal response to ACTH. It has been suggested that this reduction in the catabolic glucocorticoids may aid the anabolic effects of this agent.Four groups of 6 wether lambs were implanted with TBA (40 mg), TBA (35 mg) plus oestradiol (5 mg) or with a long-acting oestradiol implant (Compudose). Hourly blood samples were taken for 24 h periods just before and 10 days after treatment and Cortisol concentrations measured using a competitive protein binding assay.If the classical analysis of variance procedure is followed ignoring the time correlation within individual animals then the residual sum of squares will be inflated and significant effects can be missed. The correlation can be modelled by extending the analysis of variance to include a Fourier Analysis. For each Fourier cycle considerd the variation can be explained in terms of an overall model, separate treatment models and separate individual models.
The Effect of Breed, Sex and Carcass Weight on the Composition of Lamb Retail Cuts
Authors: Brown A.J. , Butler-Hogg B.W. , Wood J.D. 
Published: June 2019

Because the majority of lamb in Britain 1s sold to the consumer ‘bone-In’ it 1s difficult to trim excessive fat. Nevertheless, consumer acceptability of specific retail cuts 1s markedly affected by the fat content of that joint at the point of sale. Therefore, any strategy which aims to define breed-specific carcass weights at slaughter needs to consider the effect this will have on retail joint weights, their composition and hence acceptability. This study examined the effect of breed, sex and carcass weight on the proportions of the four main lamb cuts, and their composition.In this study a total of 317 castrated males and 238 females from six pure breeds (Clun Forest, Dorset Horn, Hampshire Down, Suffolk, Colbred and Welsh Mountain), were slaughtered in. the conventional manner. The range 1n cold carcass weight (CCW) was from 12 to 24 kg. Carcasses were jointed and each of the nine joints then dissected into lean, bone, subcutaneous fat (SCF) and intermuscular fat (IMF) (Brown and Williams, 1979)1 For ease of presentation the data for nine joints were reduced to four by combining some of them. The shoulder Included the neck, the breast Included the brisket and flank, the leg Included the upper and lower leg and the loin included the best end of neck.
Fermentation characteristics in clamp and big bale silages
Authors: Givens D I , Roscoe Susan , Brunnen Jeannie M 
Published: June 2019

In recent years big bale silage (BBS) made in large plastic bags has become an increasingly popular method of grass conservation with one estimate (Catt, 1986) suggesting that 30% of all grass silage in the UK was conserved in this way in 1985.In general BBS is drier than clamp silage (CS) (Butler, 1983) primarily for economic reasons related to contracters.charges for baling the reduced number of bales compared to wet silage. There are however few comparative data on concentrations of fermentation acids and it is not clear whether the fermentation characteristics of BBS are different from CS or merely a function of differences in dry matter content.
Effects of Beta Agonist GAH/034 on Carcass Composition and Meat Quality in Pigs
Authors: Wood J D , Brown A J , Kilpatrick M J , Bushell J E 
Published: June 2019

There has been recent interest in all the red meat species in a group of compounds known as β-agonists which reduce the proportion of fat in the carcass when added to the diet. In this work the effects of the novel Glaxo compound GAH/034 are reported.Sixty crossbred (Large White x Landrace) gilts from 16 litters were used. From 25 to 80 kg live weight, 2 groups of 10 were fed a control diet (C) containing 13 MJDE and 190g crude protein/kg. Four treatment (T) groups of 10 were fed the same diet containing 4 ppm GAH/034. All groups were fed on the same time-based feeding scale which allowed 1.2 kg/pig/d at 25 kg Increasing by 0.2 kg/d each week to an upper limit of 3.0 kg/day. All pigs were fed the control diet for four days before slaughter at the IFR abattoir at 80 kg live weight after which a range of carcass and meat quality tests were applied. Half the pigs were fully dissected into lean, bone, skin, subcutaneous fat and intermuscular fat.