Production and Nutritional Quality of low elevation zone Grasslands and Kermes Oak Shrublands (Quercus coccifera L.) in the South-East Mediterranean Basin

Roukos,

doi:10.3844/ajavsp.2010.52.59

Cited by 3 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 15 publications

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“…The proportion of NDF, ADF and lignin considerably increased in herbage throughout the grazing period as it is associated with the plant maturation, a result also found by Perez-Corona et al (1998), Roukos et al (2010), Mountousis et al (2011) and Acar et al (2016).…”

Section: Cp and Cell Wall Contentssupporting

confidence: 71%

“…The CP content of forage reflects the climatic conditions during plant growth and development (Holechek et al, 2010) and is markedly decreased with forage plant maturity (PerezCorona et al, 1998;Ramirez et al, 2004;Mountousis et al, 2008;Roukos et al, 2010;Mountousis et al, 2011;Acar et al, 2016). Additionally, ether extract tended to increase from March to May and decreased afterwards till July.…”

Section: Cp and Cell Wall Contentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Nutritional Quality of Herbaceous Vegetation in a Phryganic Mediterranean Ecosystem During the Grazing Period

Roukos

Kyriazopoulos

Abraham

et al. 2017

Not Bot Horti Agrobo

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Grazing is an economically and environmentally valuable activity in phryganic Mediterranean ecosystems. The herbaceous vegetation of these ecosystems provides an essential feed source for grazing ruminants. Despite the extension and economic importance of phryganic ecosystems in Mediterranean Basin there has been relatively little scientific focus on nutritional quality of their herbaceous vegetation. The nutritional quality of herbaceous vegetation in a phryganic ecosystem was assessed for two consecutive years during the grazing period (March to July). Herbage samples were analysed for chemical composition, metabolizable energy, in vitro dry matter digestibility, in vitro neutral detergent fiber digestibility and mineral content (Ca, P, K, Mg) at monthly basis. According to the results time of harvest significantly affected crude protein, neutral detergent fiber, acid detergent fiber, lignin and the content of minerals (i.e. Ca, P, Mg, K). Mean monthly temperature found to have a great negative impact on nutritional quality. During the grazing period, the nutritional quality of herbage vegetation was strongly correlated with growing degree days. Over a threshold of about 700 growing degree days the nutritional quality of herbage dramatically decreased. Overall the current study provides crucial information for the nutritional dynamics of the herbage vegetation of the phryganic Mediterranean ecosystems that can be towards developing an efficient grazing strategy.

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Section: Cp and Cell Wall Contentssupporting

confidence: 71%

Section: Cp and Cell Wall Contentsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Nutritional Quality of Herbaceous Vegetation in a Phryganic Mediterranean Ecosystem During the Grazing Period

Roukos

Kyriazopoulos

Abraham

et al. 2017

Not Bot Horti Agrobo

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Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…vol. 43 77 more diverse diet in comparison with the grass-based diet in the other vegetation types, given that range botanical composition is one of the main factors affecting nutritive value of cattle diet under grazing conditions (Abusuwar & Ahmed, 2010;Roukos et al, 2010;Murillo et al, 2011).Other indicators with high scores in the desert shrubland ranches were ease of walking related to low terrain slope and low presence of rocks which favours movement and grazing activities. According to Osuji (1974), cattle spend 10 times more energy when walking on high slope terrains than on a flat topography.…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Beef cattle welfare evaluation during the dry season in the northern Mexico’s cow-calf system using a visual methodology

2013

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________________________________________________________________________________ AbstractA cattle welfare index was estimated through 14 visual indicators in the cow-calf system in northern Mexico. The study was carried out at 25 ranches in Chihuahua, Mexico. The indicators were rangeland forage availability; rangeland plant diversity; ease of walking owing to terrain slope; ease of walking owing to presence of rocks; water availability; water distribution; water distance; water appearance; heat protection through vegetation; cold protection through vegetation; cold protection through topography; cold protection through management; cattle docility and cattle body condition. A score of 1 to 4 was given to each indicator, rated as poor, fair, good and excellent, respectively. Ranches under study were classified according to their dominant vegetation type. Noticeable differences were obtained among animal welfare indexes, depending on rangeland type. The lowest index of 2.82 was recorded for the desert shrublands, while indexes above 3.0 were observed for the shortgrass prairie and oak-bunchgrass rangelands. Indicators with high values were water availability and distribution. The lower cattle welfare scores were related to natural factors rather than to management indicators. ________________________________________________________________________________ Keywords:Animal welfare, indicators, rangelands # Corresponding author: saucedo.ruben@inifap.gob.mx IntroductionLivestock producers are facing the need to regulate their processes according to new consumer concerns such as natural resources sustainability and animal welfare. This is true for some emerging production systems such as "organic" and "grass beef", which are based on ecological principles and good cattle health (Lund & Rocklinsberg, 2001;Cachiarelli, 2006; Schnettler et al., 2008;Rinehart, 2011). Beyond market demands, animal welfare concerns should follow deeper reasoning, such as recognizing that animals have the right to live healthily and comfortably. Nevertheless, the beef industry is still lacking on this matter. Modern production processes are designed to maximize productivity and profitability, without considering basic animal health and welfare needs (D'Silva, 2006; Thompson, 2009).Whether motivated by humanitarian incentives or not, animal welfare is an issue that has been studied widely around the world since the last decade. Von Borell & Sorensen (2004) indicated that open spaces without overcrowding are good cattle welfare indicators. Llavallol (2006) pointed out that there is no precise definition of cattle welfare, and it is therefore recommended that animals do not go through stress factors such as hunger, thirst, malnutrition, fear, anxiety, physical and thermal suffering, pain, diseases and injuries. Giraudo & Raviolo (2007) stated that animal welfare is reached with appropriate facilities to carry out sanitary and management tasks, to minimize thermal stress, provide shade and fresh water, and reduce stress during animal loading and...

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“…On the other hand, expectations for higher grain productivity in the past, caused decreased content of minerals in grains (Zhao and McGrath, 2009;Zhao and Shewry, 2011). In the future, an impact on the production of high quality food would be laid on, which is understood as food which contains the required level of nutrients, not only the required portion of energy (Pijls et al, 2009;Ghaly and Alkoaik, 2010;Roukos et al, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biofortification of Food with Microelements

Mushtak¹

2011

American Journal of Agricultural and Biological Sciences

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Problem statement: Recently a particular attention was paid to the issue of microelement hunger, also termed hidden hunger. The problem was of global significance, since was related with the public health and concerns over 2 billion people. Approach: The study discusses the state of the art in the research on food biofortification as the sustainable solution to cope with micronutrient deficiencies. Enrichment of food with microelements seems to be the rational method of preventive, not interventionist character. Consuming such food should reduce the intake of mineral supplements containing inorganic salts, whereby microelements posses low bioavailability. Different methods of increasing the density of microelements in food of plant and animal origin (agronomic and biotechnological) are discussed. Results and Conclusion: Using microelements introduced with either fertilizers or feeds in the form which is highly bioavailable should yield plant and animal products containing higher levels of these constituents. Introducing microelements bound to a biomass which serves as a biological carrier is possible by means of the process of biosorption. The method is widely discussed in the literature as wastewater treatment process in which metal cations are removed from effluents and bound with the biomass by postulated ion exchange mechanism. The same process can be used to enrich the biomass with metal cations of nutritional significance. Studies on laying hens fed with new feed additives produced by biosorption yielded higher densities of Fe, Zn, Mn and Cu in eggs content, as compared with the control group which was fed with diet containing inorganic form of microelements.

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Production and Nutritional Quality of low elevation zone Grasslands and Kermes Oak Shrublands (Quercus coccifera L.) in the South-East Mediterranean Basin

Cited by 3 publications

References 15 publications

Nutritional Quality of Herbaceous Vegetation in a Phryganic Mediterranean Ecosystem During the Grazing Period

Nutritional Quality of Herbaceous Vegetation in a Phryganic Mediterranean Ecosystem During the Grazing Period

Beef cattle welfare evaluation during the dry season in the northern Mexico’s cow-calf system using a visual methodology

Biofortification of Food with Microelements

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