The effect of feeding system on fattening performance,slaughter, and carcass characteristics of Norduz male kids

The study was conducted to determine the effect of feeding systems on fattening performance, slaughter, and carcass characteristics of male Norduz kids. In the study, 20 male Norduz kids weaned at 2.5 months of age were divided into two groups after weaning. The first group was reared under semi-intensive conditions (SI) on a mixture of pasture and concentrate, and the second group was reared under extensive conditions (E) on pasture only. SI group had higher final weight (35.30 kg versus 32.81 kg), daily weight gain (153.10 g versus 132.14 g), and warm carcass yield (44.84% versus 46.55%) compared to the E group although there were no significant differences. Body organs, carcass parts, prime cuts, and chemical composition of the chop area did not also differ in two groups significantly. As a conclusion, this study showed that semi-intensive feeding systems improved kid fattening performance and carcass characteristics.     

Effect of different housing systems on fattening performance,slaughter and carcass characteristics of Akkeçi (White Goat) male kids

The aim of this study was to determine the fattening performance and the slaughter and carcass characteristics of Akkeçi (Saanen × Kilis (B₁) crossbred) male kids raised in individual crates (IC) or in group pen housing (GP). In both GP and IC groups, total 13 heads of male kids, whose initial body weights were 21.43 ± 1.03 kg and 20.61 ± 0.98 kg, respectively, evaluated for their fattening performances. After 56 days of the fattening period, the final body weights and average daily weight gains of the GP and IC kids were recorded as 30.84 ± 0.82 kg and 25.84 ± 0.76 kg; 182.42 ± 14.77 g and 92.09 ± 13.76 g, respectively (P < 0.001). Adrenal gland weights of the GP and IC groups were similar as 1.66 ± 0.25 g and 1.77 ± 0.22 g, respectively. Although, the carcass conformation of kids was similar between groups, there were significant differences between GP and IC groups for some slaughter and carcass characteristics. In general, although housing kids reared in individual crates provides opportunity to individually feed and monitor a kid, the results obtained from the individual crates in the present study were not satisfactorily from the ethological and production points of view.     

Does the length of time dried distillers' grain with solubles substitution for soybean meal affect physiological indicators and meat quality in finishing lambs?

This study examined how inclusion of dried distillers' grains with solubles (DDGS) in finishing lamb diets for different periods affects some physiological indicators and meat quality. A total of 40 male lambs were divided into four groups according to feeding regimen during the 120-day finishing period as follows: C120: no DDGS included in diet for 120 days; D120: DDGS included in diet for 120 days; D75: no DDGS included in diet for 45 days + DDGS included in diet for 75 days; D45: no DDGS included in diet for 75 days + DDGS included in diet for 45 days. Dietary inclusion rate of DDGS was 27.5%. Fattening performance and rumen parameters were not affected by treatment. Feeding regimens had no significant effect on meat quality except the instrumental tenderness and juiciness score. DDGS fed lambs had higher level of total trans fatty acids and n-6/n-3 ratio in meat. 10t-C18:1, 11t-C18:1 and 9c,11t conjugated linoleic acid contents of adipose tissue were higher in all the DDGS groups compared with C120 lambs (p < .001). These results suggest that soybean meal can be replaced with corn DDGS in lamb diets for up to 120 days during the finishing period with no adverse effects on some physiological response feedlot performance and meat quality.     

Nickel seminal concentrations in various animals and correlation to spermatozoa quality

In this study, the concentration of nickel in stallion, bull, ram, boar and fox semen, and its relation with spermatozoa quality was analyzed. The concentration of nickel in semen was 0.20 mg kg(-1) in stallion, 0.12 mg kg(-1) in bull, 0.31 mg kg(-1) in ram, 0.06 mg kg(-1) in boar and 0.36 mg kg(-1) in fox. Seminal nickel concentration was significantly higher (P < 0.05) in foxes than that in bulls and significantly higher (P < 0.01) in rams and foxes in comparison with boars. Evaluation of total pathological spermatozoa revealed the highest number in stallions followed by rams, bulls, boars and foxes. In bull, ram and boar semen, separated flagellum, flagellum torso and knob-twisted flagellum were predominant. Knob-twisted flagellum, separated flagellum and flagellum torso were found in increased number in stallion semen and broken flagellum in fox semen. Correlation analysis in bulls indicated a high positive correlation between seminal nickel and separated flagellum (r = 0.76) and medium positive correlation between nickel and flagellum torso (r = 0.62), and in rams a high positive correlation between nickel and separated flagellum (r = 0.77). Medium positive correlation was found between nickel and separated flagellum (r = 0.43) and between nickel and other pathological spermatozoa (r = 0.45) in boars.     

Recovery of nutrients from the liquid fraction of digestate: Use of enriched zeolite and biochar as nitrogen fertilizers

The liquid fraction after liquid/solid separation of biogas digestate has a high potential as a fertilizer due to its high nutrient concentration. However, the direct application of digestate in agricultural fields results in practical problems due to its voluminous nature. One solution to this could be to concentrate nutrients onto sorbents such as biochar or zeolites, which can subsequently be used as a fertilizer. This study investigated the ability of biochar and zeolite ‘clinoptilolite' enriched with digestate nutrients to supply nitrogen (N) when used as a fertilizer. A pot experiment with ryegrass was conducted to test the effect of a nutrient‐enriched biochar and clinoptilolite by determining plant biomass growth and N uptake. This included untreated biochar and clinoptilolite as controls and two levels of N application (15 and 45 mg N per pot) each at two initial loading ratios (low and high). Nutrient‐enriched biochar and clinoptilolite increased plant biomass yield (up to 1.02 and 2.39 g per pot) and N uptake (up to 11.23 and 39.94 mg N per pot) compared to the untreated sorbents treatments. Initial loading ratio had a significant effect on plant biomass response and apparent N recovery (ANR) for enriched clinoptilolite, and lower initial loading ratio improved plant growth. In contrast to clinoptilolite, higher initial loading ratio resulted in higher ANR. In conclusion, our results reveal that N released from enriched clinoptilolite and biochar could be taken up by the plants, clinoptilolite performed more effectively than biochar, and initial loading ratio affected the performance of the sorbents when used as a fertilizer.     

Effect of Vitamin D 3 on Cadmium Retention by Laying Hens

The effect of cadmium (Cd) and vitamin D 3 on Cd retention in the organism of laying hens was observed. Hens ( n =48) were divided into eight groups with six animals per group as follows: experimental groups 1, 3 and 5 were administered Cd (0.3, 0.6 and 6.0 mg CdCl 2 kg -1 body weight, respectively) daily in water and groups 2, 4 and 6 were administered the same CdCl 2 concentrations supplemented with vitamin D 3 (100 IU hen -1 ). C1 was a control group without any supplements and C2 a control group supplemented only with vitamin D 3 . Samples of inner organs were analysed by atomic absorption spectrophotometry after 6 months of Cd exposure. A significant elevation in Cd levels, mainly in the liver and kidneys, was found. A significant decrease ( P h 0.01) in Cd levels in the liver was recorded after the addition of 6.0 mg CdCl 2 kg -1 body weight and vitamin D 3 , in comparison with the group without vitamin D 3 (18.76 vs. 10.33 mg kg -1 ). A similar decrease in Cd levels in the kidney ( P h 0.001) at the same supplementation dose of Cd was obtained in comparison with the group without vitamin D 3 (145.32 vs. 60.37 mg kg -1 ). The results confirmed that vitamin D 3 is able to reduce the Cd content in the organism of laying hens. The main effect of vitamin D 3 was demonstrated by decreasing Cd retention in the liver and especially in the kidneys.     

Reducing inbreeding rates with a breeding circle: Theory and practice in Veluws Heideschaap

Breeding circles allow genetic management in closed populations without pedigrees. In a breeding circle, breeding is split over sub‐populations. Each sub‐population receives breeding males from a single sub‐population and supplies breeding males to one other sub‐population. Donor‐recipient combinations of sub‐populations remain the same over time. Here, we derive inbreeding levels both mathematically and by computer simulation and compare them to actual inbreeding rates derived from DNA information in a real sheep population. In Veluws Heideschaap, a breeding circle has been in operation for over 30 years. Mathematically, starting with inbreeding levels and kinships set to zero, inbreeding rates per generation (ΔF) initially were 0.29%–0.47% within flocks but later converged to 0.18% in all flocks. When, more realistically, inbreeding levels at the start were high and kinship between flocks low, inbreeding levels immediately dropped to the kinship levels between flocks and rates more gradually converged to 0.18%. In computer simulations with overlapping generations, inbreeding levels and rates followed the same pattern, but converged to a lower ΔF of 0.12%. ΔF was determined in the real population with a 12 K SNP chip in recent generations. ΔF in the real population was 0.29%, based on markers to 0.41% per generation based on heterozygosity levels. This is two to three times the theoretically derived values. These increased rates in the real population are probably due to selection and/or the presence of dominant rams siring a disproportionate number of offspring. When these were simulated, ΔF agreed better: 0.35% for selection, 0.38% for dominant rams and 0.67% for both together. The realized inbreeding rates are a warning that in a real population inbreeding rates in a breeding circle can be higher than theoretically expected due to selection and dominant rams. Without a breeding circle, however, inbreeding rates would have been even higher.     

The potential of automatic methods of classification to identify leaf diseases from multispectral images

Three methods of automatic classification of leaf diseases are described based on high-resolution multispectral stereo images. Leaf diseases are economically important as they can cause a loss of yield. Early and reliable detection of leaf diseases has important practical relevance, especially in the context of precision agriculture for localized treatment with fungicides. We took stereo images of single sugar beet leaves with two cameras (RGB and multispectral) in a laboratory under well controlled illumination conditions. The leaves were either healthy or infected with the leaf spot pathogen Cercospora beticola or the rust fungus Uromyces betae. To fuse information from the two sensors, we generated 3-D models of the leaves. We discuss the potential of two pixelwise methods of classification: k-nearest neighbour and an adaptive Bayes classification with minimum risk assuming a Gaussian mixture model. The medians of pixelwise classification rates achieved in our experiments are 91% for Cercospora beticola and 86% for Uromyces betae. In addition, we investigated the potential of contextual classification with the so called conditional random field method, which seemed to eliminate the typical errors of pixelwise classification.     

Tree species preferences of foraging insectivorous birds in a primeval mountain mixed forest: implications for management

Bird–plant species associations can be an important component of habitat selection in forest birds. We assessed tree species preferences of foraging insectivorous birds in a primeval beech–fir forest in north-west Slovakia, hypothesizing that bird population densities are negatively associated with foraging specialization. We sampled foraging behaviour by random point observations from mid-May until the end of July during 1997?2003. Significant preference or avoidance patterns were found in 16 of 17 bird species. Based on the tree preference index, we distinguished four main foraging specializations: generalists, deciduous specialists, coniferous specialists, and dead wood specialists. Many bird species showed strong preferences for such rare and uncommon tree species as wych elm (Ulmus glabra), sycamore (Acer pseudoplatanus), and Norway spruce (Picea abies). European beech (Fagus sylvatica), hazel (Corylus avellana), and rowan (Sorbus aucuparia) were generally avoided. Birds with low densities tended to be most selective, but that effect was not statistically significant. Population variability was not significantly associated with foraging specialization. We hypothesize that impoverishment of tree species diversity within forest stands could lead to less diverse bird assemblages composed of species specialized on those tree species remaining and of generalist foragers able to adapt to a wide range of foraging substrates.