Replacement Value of Undecorticated Sunflower Meal as a Supplement for Milk Production by Crossbred Cows and Buffaloes in the Northern Plains of India

The replacement value of undecorticated sunflower meal (SFM) in the diets of dairy animals was assessed on-station and on-farm. Eighteen primiparous crossbred (Bos taurus×Bos indicus) cows (350.4±8.84 kg), randomly allocated to three groups, were used in the on-station study. The animals were fed on either a conventional concentrate supplement (control) or on an experimental concentrate, in which SFM replaced 25% (SFM-25) or 50% (SFM-50) of the CP in the control supplement. Green oats (Avena sativa) were supplied ad libitum. A metabolism trial conducted following 60 days of experimental feeding revealed that the intakes of DM, DCP and TDN were similar among the groups. The digestibilities of OM, CP, EE, NDF and ADF were also without significant differences. All the groups were in positive nitrogen balance. Inclusion of SFM at either level had no effect on the intake, excretion or retention of nitrogen. The daily milk yield and its composition did not differ among the dietary treatments. Moreover, the efficiency of utilization of DOM and TDN for FCM production tended to reflect, although non-significantly, increasing levels of SFM inclusion. In the on-farm study, seven multiparous milking buffaloes belonging to six farmers were used to assess the effect of replacing 20% of the CP of the conventional supplement with SFM, in a predominantly crop residue-based diet. The study continued for 4 months and revealed that the average daily feed intake and milk production was similar in the control and SFM-fed groups. It was concluded that SFM can be effectively utilized as a cheaper replacement for costly oil cakes and wheat bran for economic milk production by smallholder farmers.     

The parasitoid complex ofLiriomyza huidobrensis in cucumber greenhouses in Izmir province, Western Turkey

Liriomyza huidobrensis (Blanchard) (Diptera: Agromyzidae) is an important pest in cucumber greenhouses in Çamönü (Menderes, Izmir), Turkey. In a study carried out in cucumber greenhouses during the spring and autumn seasons of 1999 and 2000, leaves were sampled weekly and kept in the laboratory to observe and count emerging leafminers and parasitoid adults. Five parasitoid species were collected: the braconidsBracon intercessor Nees von Esenbeck andOpius meracus Fischer, which occurred only in the spring; and the eulophidsDiglyphus crassinervis Erdös,Diglyphus isaea (Walker) andNeochrysocharis formosa (Westwood), which occurred in both the spring and autumn seasons.D. isaea andN. formosa were the predominant parasitoid species found.O. meracus was recorded for the first time as a Turkish species andB. intercessor was recorded for the first time inL. huidobrensis.     

Antibacterial activity of Parmelia kamstchandalis

The ethanol extract of P. kamstchandalis as well as ethyl haematommate, ethyl-2,4-dihydroxy-6-methylbenzoate and methyl-β-orsellinate isolated from it exhibited varying degrees of antibacterial activity.     

Managing threats and restoring wetlands within catchments of the Great Barrier Reef,Australia

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Forecasting monthly catfish (Ictalurus punctatus.) pond bank and feed prices

Volatility in catfish pond bank and feed prices lead to profit uncertainty in the catfish industry. Analysis of the factors that affect those prices and development of a forecasting model would provide guidance to catfish farm managers. Error-correction models (ECM) based on cointegrating relationships among variables were specified following development of a single-equation ARIMAX model. Factors identified as those that influence catfish price were: lagged value of catfish, feed and substitute product prices, while those that influenced feed price were: lagged value of feed, corn and soybean prices. ECM estimates implied that fish price adjusts approximately 6% and feed price 22% to the long-run equilibrium in 1?month. The analysis showed that it takes less than 17?months and 5?months to correct for long-run disequilibrium for catfish and feed prices, respectively. The ARIMAX model demonstrated a better fit for both in-sample and out-of-sample forecasting for catfish price and had better out-of-sample predictive ability for feed prices.     

The interactive effects of paternal size and offspring feeding strategy on offspring fitness of an Indian major carp Labeo rohita (Hamilton, 1822)

Parental condition‐dependent offspring fitness is a well‐discussed issue in animal breeding research, while offspring environment and its interaction with parental condition are currently another very interesting topic to investigate the plasticity of phenotypic traits across an environmental gradient. The present study was, therefore, conducted following a half‐sib breeding design to test the effects of (a) paternal body size, (b) offspring feeding strategy (everyday and every other day) and (c) their interactions on fitness‐related traits (e.g., survival, total length and body area) of offspring of a commercially important aquaculture species, the Indian major carp (Labeo rohita). The analysis revealed that paternal body size had significant effects on offspring survival rate and total length, while no significant influence was found in body area. The study also showed that the offspring feeding strategy significantly affected all offspring traits. Interestingly, the study unveiled the significant interactive effects of paternal condition and offspring feeding for offspring survival rate and total length. These findings suggest that paternal size, offspring rearing environment and their interactions can influence offspring fitness‐related traits which are very essential information for the sustainable production of good quality larvae under variable dietary conditions.     

Effects of light and artificial fish shelter (PVC pipe) on some phenotypic traits of stinging catfish (Heteropneustes fossilis Bloch, 1794)

Light and shelter are very important ecological factors that can affect many traits of fish. Therefore, a study was conducted to explore the effect of light and shelter on some phenotypic traits of stinging catfish (Heteropneustes fossilis Bloch, 1794). During experiment, equal‐sized juveniles (mean ± SE: 9.04 ± 0.09 cm) were collected and reared in aquariums dividing into four treatment groups, such as T₁ (0L:24D without pipe), T₂ (0L:24D with pipe), T₃ (12L:12D without pipe) and T₄ (12L:12D with pipe). Each treatment had 36 fish, which were randomly distributed into three replications. The fish were kept up to 120 days, and then, the growth performance and skin colour were analysed. The results showed that both lighting and shelter conditions as well as their interactions had significant effects on some traits expression. The analyses revealed that lighting condition significantly influenced body area, head width and skin coloration, while shelter condition significantly affected total and standard length, body area, and their interaction showed significant effects on body area, head width and anal fin length. Thus, this study indicates that stinging catfish show better growth performance and colour patterns especially in dark and sheltered conditions which could be recommended for the successive production of this highly priced fish species.     

Climate change,migration and human rights in Bangladesh: Perspectives on governance

Bangladesh experiences some of the most severe impacts of climate change, with impacts already evident in the coastal regions. Recent data shows that around 32% of the coastal communities in Bangladesh are affected by climate‐induced hazards each year. In 2011, 64% among them were displaced locally and 27% were displaced to other locations in Bangladesh. It requires comprehensive and viable polices and planning to meet the challenges of managing a large number of displaced people. In this context, this paper reviews and investigates the effectiveness of current governance frameworks to address migration of affected communities. It argues that migration can be an effective way to cope with environmental shocks. Finally, it discusses policy imperatives for effective protection of people displaced by climate risks with a special reference to adopting a human rights‐based approach in law and policy making for climate‐induced migration.     

Responses of female lambs to Rev-1 (brucellosis) vaccination

In order to investigate Rev-1 vaccination immunogenicity, 60 indigenous (Makuii) non-infected female lambs 3–4 months of age in northwestern Iran were systematically divided into two groups: 40 into a treatment (T) group and 20 into a control (C) group. Lambs in Group T received 1 ml of Rev-1 vaccine by s.c. injection and blood samples were collected from both groups at 15 days and 2, 4, 6, 8, 10, 12 and 14 months after vaccination. The seroagglutination test (SAT) and the 2-mercaptoethanol test (2-MET) were carried out on the sera. Control lambs were negative in all the examinations. The results of the SAT showed that the mean( ± SD) antibody titre of lambs in Group T was maximum (725 ± 112 IUml⁻¹) at Day 15, then declined gradually until the fourth month and was in the normal range (31 IU ml⁻¹) thereafter. The results of the 2-MET were negative in Group C but in Group T the antibody titre was at a maximum level (161.7 ± 46.6 IUml⁻¹) at Day 15, decreased to 1.2 ± 2.5IUml⁻¹ at 4 months post-vaccination and was negativ; thereafter. In the second part of the trial, 20 vaccinated and ten control lambs received 0.25 ml melitin by i.d. injection 10.5 months after vaccination. The control group showed no reaction but 13 (65%) of the vaccinated lambs showed an oedematous swelling at the site of injection within 48 h, which indicated that the delayed-type hypersensitivity test (DTHT) could be useful in the diagnosis of Brucella infection in lambs. In the third stage of the experiment, four vaccinated and three control lambs were injected with Brucella melitensis strain 16M at a rate of more than 123 × 10⁶ bacteria per lamb 14 months after vaccination. Rectal temperature (Tem), heart-rate (HR) and respiration rate (RR) were measured three times a day (at 08:00, 14:00 and 21:00 h) 3 days before until 9 days after injection. SAT was carried out on the day before injection and at the time of slaughter. The mean Tem, HR and RR did not significantly change but the mean( ± SD) SAT titre in the T lambs 9 days after injection was 47.5 ± 9.9 IU ml⁻¹ (vs. 8.66 ±6.1 IU ml⁻¹ in the control lambs) (P < 0.01). All lambs were slaughtered on the ninth day. Fewer bacterial cultures of samples taken from the uterus, spleen, liver and lymph nodes were positive in T lambs compared with the controls. The lower proportion of Brucella-positive lambs in the vaccinated group compared with the control group indicates that vaccination with Rev-1 improved the resistance of lambs to the experimental infection.     

Note: Does<Emphasis Type="Italic">Liriomyza cicerina</Emphasis> affect the yield of chickpeas (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cicer arietinum</Emphasis>)?

Liriomyza cicerina (Rondani, 1875) (Diptera: Agromyzidae) is an important pest on chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) in some regions of Turkey. The objective of this study was to determine whether the populations ofL. cicerina on different varieties of chickpea plants during the 2004 and 2005 production seasons affected yield in Sanliurfa province. The trials were carried out using eight different varieties of chickpea with three replicates. During each season, larval densities on leaves were assessed weekly. TheL. cicerina larval population was lowest on four varieties for both seasons. There were very minor differences in yield among the eight varieties in the production seasons. There was no correlation found between larval density and yield loss. http://www.phytoparasitica.org posting Jan. 14, 2007.