The effects of addition of substrate consisting of plastic mesh fencing to experimental earthen ponds were evaluated for the culture of the red swamp crawfish, Procambarus clarkii, without planted forage. Mean daily yield (kg/ha/d), number of crawfish harvested (number/ha/d), and mean individual harvest weight were compared for ponds with and without substrate during a 2‐yr period. The surface area of added substrate was equivalent to 50% of the bottom surface area of the pond. Mean daily yield in the ponds containing substrate, based on a comparison with that of the previous year, increased by 80.2% and was principally attributed to a 66.7% increase in the number of crawfish harvested. Comparative values for the ponds without substrate were ?13.1 and ?11.7%. For the second year, the treatment‐dependent response was consistent. Mean daily yield for the substrate ponds increased by 48.8% compared to 15.0% for the ponds lacking substrate. The primary benefit of the substrate appears to be provision of refuge and three‐dimensional distribution of crawfish in the pond, thereby reducing the incidence of cannibalism and increasing the total number of crawfish harvested per hectare per day. The benefit of the substrate in a commercial production setting must be weighed against its cost and longevity as well as the conditions of the particular management scenario into which it may be incorporated. 相似文献
An alpaca and a llama in late stages of gestation were evaluated for lethargy, anorexia, and recumbency. Both camelids had cloudy, white, turbid serum, elevated serum triglyceride (1564, 5658 mg/dL, respectively) and cholesterol (158, 297 mg/dL, respectively) concentrations, and ketonuria. Signs of fetal stress were evident ultrasonographically in the alpaca, and a live cria was delivered by Cesarean section performed under general anesthesia. The alpaca developed severe metabolic acidosis, hepatic lipidosis, and acute renal failure secondary to renal lipidosis and died 36 hours after admission despite medical therapy. Histopathology revealed renal and hepatic lipidosis and neutrophilic pancreatitis. The cria died 72 hours after birth. The llama responded to IV electrolyte, dextrose, and regular crystalline insulin therapy. The pregnancy was maintained, and the llama was discharged from the hospital 20 days after admission. Two months after discharge, the llama gave birth to a live, 5 kg cria. Findings of hypertriglyceridemia, hypercholesterolemia, elevated sorbitol dehydrogenase activity, metabolic acidosis, azotemia, and ketonuria occurred in these two camelids. Based on this report, camelids appear to be similar to both horses and cattle in their response to severe energy imbalances in late gestation. 相似文献
Organic production of one of the most popular botanical supplements, Echinacea, continues to expand in the U.S. Echinacea seeds typically show a high degree of dormancy that can be broken by ethephon or gibberelic acid (GA), but these methods are currently disallowed in organic production. In order to determine the efficacy of non-chemical seed treatments, we evaluated the effect of varying seed source and supplying light, with and without cold-moist stratification, on seed germination of the three most important medicinal species of Echinacea, E. angustifolia DC, E. purpurea (L) Moench, and E. pallida (Nutt.) Nutt. Treatments included cold-moist stratification under 24 h light, 24 h dark, and 16/8 h light/dark to break seed dormancy. We found that germination was greater in the E. purpurea and E. pallida seeds from a commercial organic seed source compared to a public germplasm source. When seeds were not cold-moist stratified, 16-24 h light increased germination in E. angustifolia only. Echinacea angustifolia, E. purpurea, and E. pallida seeds that were cold-moist stratified under 16-24 h of light for 4 wk had a significantly greater percentage and rate of germination compared to seeds germinated in the dark. Therefore, cold-moist stratification under light conditions is recommended as a method to break seed dormancy and increase germination rates in organic production of Echinacea. 相似文献
1. Individually‐caged broiler hens, which had been reared on an advised rationing programme, were fed allowances of 1.88, 1.61, 1.32 or 1.13 MJ apparent metabolisable energy/bird d at four different protein intakes (27, 23, 19.5 or 16.5 g crude protein per bird d) from 21 to 60 weeks of age.
2. Age at first egg, body‐weight gain and egg production were affected by energy allowance. Birds on the lower energy allowances came into lay later than birds on the higher energy allowances and at a lower body weight.
3. Body‐weight gain decreased with decreasing energy allowance. The decrease in egg output in response to decreasing energy allowance resulted from more birds ceasing to lay and fewer birds laying on more than 3 d per week. Similar changes in the distribution of rates of lay were observed on each treatment as the flock aged.
4. The relationship between body‐weight gain and egg number on each treatment was negative from 21 to 36 weeks, but became less consistent with age.
5. Protein intake had little effect on body weight. At the lowest energy allowance, egg number and egg weight decreased with increasing protein allowance. This effect was not observed on the higher energy allowances. 相似文献
1. Broiler parent stock were fed daily allowances of 1.88, 1.73 or 1.52 MJ apparent metabolisable energy (AME) per bird at two different daily protein intakes (27, 21.3 g crude protein (CP) per bird) or daily protein intakes of 24.6 and 19.4 g CP per bird at a daily energy intake of 1.88 MJ AME per bird from 21 to 64 weeks of age.
2. Body‐weight gain and carcass fat and water content increased and fertility decreased with increasing energy allowance. Maximum egg production occurred at an energy intake of 1.73 MJ AME/bird d.
3. Differences in egg weight and hatchability were related to differences in both energy and protein intake. The highest egg weight occurred at the highest allowance of energy and protein. Hatchability was depressed where the daily allowances of protein and energy were in a ratio of more than 15 g protein: 1 MJ AME.
4. Apart from egg size no significant effects on reproductive performance were observed when dietary protein intake was varied from 27 to 19.5 g/bird d.
5. Requirements of broiler breeder hens for protein during lay may be lower than previously thought. For the strain used a protein intake of 19.5 g/bird d appeared adequate provided essential amino acid concentrations were maintained.
6. The close relationships between body weight and energy allowance and the latter and egg production make body‐weight gain a useful guide to management. A body‐weight gain of about 1.1 kg from 21 to 36 weeks of age was associated with optimum performance in this study. 相似文献
1. Broiler parent stock (Marshall) were supplied with energy and protein from diets in amounts defined as percentages of an allowance such that nutrient intake increased or decreased in three consecutive periods from 23 to 63 weeks of age.
2. A 20% reduction in energy allowance from 23 to 34 weeks was associated with reduced body‐weight gain, egg weight and carcass constituents except ash, but had no significant effect on egg production or hatchability.
3. Increases in nutrient intake after 34 weeks were associated with an increase in body‐weight gain and carcass fat.
4. Moderate decreases in energy intake after 34 weeks were associated with reduced body‐weight gain, and a 15% reduction in nutrient intake resulted in a decrease in body weight and egg weight.
5. It is suggested that a feeding allowance which controls body‐weight gain during early lay, and then allows for a gradual increase in body weight over the breeding period may be the most efficient way of feeding the broiler breeder hen. 相似文献
An outbreak of perinatal foal mortality associated with a herpesvirus is described. Twenty two foals either were still-born, or died soon after birth, or were weak and soon developed severe respiratory signs, or were normal at birth and developed respiratory symptoms 18 to 24 hours later. Elevated temperatures, heart and respiratory rates were constant features. The animals were severely leucopaenic, and showed an absolute neutropaenia. At autopsy the lungs were enlarged, and showed varying degrees of aeration and moderate to severe oedema and congestion. Histopathology showed an acute focal necrotising bronchiolitis with the presence of intranuclear eosinophilic inclusion bodies. Herpesvirus was recovered from 9 foals in cell culture and identified by electron microscopy. 相似文献
Growth and reproduction by powdery mildew pathogens is generally inhibited by decreasing relative humidity. With Erysiphe sp. on Rhododendron cv. Elizabeth, the initial stages of colony development were adversely affected by reducing the relative humidity from 100% to 70 and 85%. No significant effects on secondary or tertiary hyphal development were detected. Light intensity and photoperiod both had considerable effect on the induced resistance response of the host. Over the initial 5 days of colonization there were no significant differences between any of the treatments. After 13 days, however, expansion of fungal colonies at 180 photosynthetic active radiation (PAR) was limited solely to the area initially infested by primary hyphae. By comparison, in colonies grown at 80 PAR regardless of day length, secondary and tertiary hyphae had extended beyond the area first colonized. These effects resulted in differing morphologies, small colonies of densely packed hyphae formed at 180 PAR compared with open spreading colonies at 80 PAR. 相似文献
On June 25, 2002, aquarium veterinarians treated a 5-year-old, male little blue penguin (Eudyptula minor) that was acutely recumbent and dull, with inappetence of 24-hour duration. The penguin died within 10 minutes of presentation despite emergency resuscitation efforts. Gross pathologic findings consisted of pulmonary congestion and intestinal hemorrhage. Histopathologic findings included necrosis of tips of intestinal villi, increased numbers of mononuclear cells in pulmonary interstitium and hepatic sinusoids, and gram-positive bacteria in systemic microvasculature. Transmission electron microscopic examination revealed short gram-positive bacilli located in lumina of glomerular capillaries and in cytoplasm of mononuclear phagocytic cells in the lung and liver. Erysipelothrix rhusiopathiae was recovered from the lung, liver, and intestine by bacteriologic culture. Amplicons from polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tests using Erysipelothrix genus-specific primers and total genomic DNA extracted from formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections of lung and intestine demonstrated 99% nucleotide sequence identity with 16S small-subunit ribosomal DNA of E. rhusiopathiae and E. tonsillarum. The source of infection was speculated to be fish in the diet; however, repeated attempts to detect Erysipelothrix spp. from the mucous layer of food fish using bacteriologic culture and PCR were unsuccessful. This is the first report of erysipelas in a captive aquatic bird. Details of the isolation of E. rhusiopathiae and the application of molecular testing to identify Erysipelothrix DNA in formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded tissue sections are given. 相似文献