Reproductive and economic performance of local livestock in southwestern Madagascar: Potentials and constraints of a highly extensive system

Feldt, Tobias; Neudert, Regina; Fust, Pascal; Schlecht, Eva

doi:10.1016/j.agsy.2016.08.007

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

References 21 publications

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“…This may be a reflection on differences in goat management and or differences in breed histories. Goats in Madagascar are mostly raised in the Southwestern region (Feldt et al, 2016). It is possible that the goats are secluded in the region with the highlands to northeast acting as barriers, thereby leading to higher levels of inbreeding.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Timing and Extent of Inbreeding in African Goats

et al. 2019

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Genetic characterization of African goats is one of the current priorities in the improvement of goats in the continent. This study contributes to the characterization effort by determining the levels and number of generations to common ancestors (“age”) associated with inbreeding in African goat breeds and identifies regions that contain copy number variation mistyped as being homozygous. Illumina 50k single nucleotide polymorphism genotype data for 608 goats from 31 breeds were used to compute the level and age of inbreeding at both local (marker) and global levels (F G ) using a model-based approach based on a hidden Markov model. Runs of homozygosity (ROH) segments detected using the Viterbi algorithm led to ROH-based inbreeding coefficients for all ROH (F ROH ) and for ROH longer than 2 Mb (F ROH > 2Mb ). Some of the genomic regions identified as having ROH are likely to be hemizygous regions (copy number deletions) mistyped as homozygous regions. Although the proportion of these miscalled ROH is small and does not substantially affect estimates of levels of inbreeding for individual animals, the inbreeding metrics were adjusted by removing these regions from the ROH. All the inbreeding metrics varied widely across breeds, with overall means of 0.0408, 0.0370, and 0.0691 and medians of 0.0125, 0.0098, and 0.0366 for F ROH , F ROH > 2Mb , and F G , respectively. Several breeds (including Menabe and Sofia from Madagascar) had high proportions of recent inbreeding, while Small East African, Ethiopian, and most of the West African breeds (including West African Dwarf) had more ancient inbreeding.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Timing and Extent of Inbreeding in African Goats

et al. 2019

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“…The population of Madagascar primarily consists of rural, agrarian societies where cattle are significant [71]. The local cattle, known as zebu, are an extremely important part of Malagasy culture and society [71,72], and may be used as insurance for periods of crop failures [73]. Furthermore, recent social and political instability has resulted in the rise of organized criminal gangs specialized in stealing zebu, leading to a change in traditional grazing regimes and movement of livestock from pastures to pens closer to human habitation [74].…”

Section: Zooprophylaxis and Cattle In Madagascarmentioning

confidence: 99%

Widespread zoophagy and detection of Plasmodium spp. in Anopheles mosquitoes in southeastern Madagascar

Finney

McKenzie

Rabaovola

et al. 2021

Malar J

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Background Malaria is a top cause of mortality on the island nation of Madagascar, where many rural communities rely on subsistence agriculture and livestock production. Understanding feeding behaviours of Anopheles in this landscape is crucial for optimizing malaria control and prevention strategies. Previous studies in southeastern Madagascar have shown that Anopheles mosquitoes are more frequently captured within 50 m of livestock. However, it remains unknown whether these mosquitoes preferentially feed on livestock. Here, mosquito blood meal sources and Plasmodium sporozoite rates were determined to evaluate patterns of feeding behaviour in Anopheles spp. and malaria transmission in southeastern Madagascar. Methods Across a habitat gradient in southeastern Madagascar 7762 female Anopheles spp. mosquitoes were collected. Of the captured mosquitoes, 492 were visibly blood fed and morphologically identifiable, and a direct enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) was used to test for swine, cattle, chicken, human, and dog blood among these specimens. Host species identification was confirmed for multiple blood meals using PCR along with Sanger sequencing. Additionally, 1,607 Anopheles spp. were screened for the presence of Plasmodium falciparum, P. vivax-210, and P. vivax 247 circumsporozoites (cs) by ELISA. Results Cattle and swine accounted, respectively, for 51% and 41% of all blood meals, with the remaining 8% split between domesticated animals and humans. Of the 1,607 Anopheles spp. screened for Plasmodium falciparum, Plasmodium vivax 210, and Plasmodium vivax 247 cs-protein, 45 tested positive, the most prevalent being P. vivax 247, followed by P. vivax 210 and P. falciparum. Both variants of P. vivax were observed in secondary vectors, including Anopheles squamosus/cydippis, Anopheles coustani, and unknown Anopheles spp. Furthermore, evidence of coinfection of P. falciparum and P. vivax 210 in Anopheles gambiae sensu lato (s.l.) was found. Conclusions Here, feeding behaviour of Anopheles spp. mosquitoes in southeastern Madagascar was evaluated, in a livestock rich landscape. These findings suggest largely zoophagic feeding behaviors of Anopheles spp., including An. gambiae s.l. and presence of both P. vivax and P. falciparum sporozoites in Anopheles spp. A discordance between P. vivax reports in mosquitoes and humans exists, suggesting high prevalence of P. vivax circulating in vectors in the ecosystem despite low reports of clinical vivax malaria in humans in Madagascar. Vector surveillance of P. vivax may be relevant to malaria control and elimination efforts in Madagascar. At present, the high proportion of livestock blood meals in Madagascar may play a role in buffering (zooprophylaxis) or amplifying (zoopotentiation) the impacts of malaria. With malaria vector control efforts focused on indoor feeding behaviours, complementary approaches, such as endectocide-aided vector control in livestock may be an effective strategy for malaria reduction in Madagascar.

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“…Goat breeding in southwestern Madagascar is extensive and suffers from low production rates due mainly to (i) long inter-gestation periods [60] and (ii) the high rate of mortality of kids reported by farmers [39,61]. Despite these limitations, goat breeding is an important source of income for farmers [17,43].…”

Section: Goat Breeding: An Alternative To Wood Charcoal Production An...mentioning

confidence: 99%

Goat Breeding: A Possible Sustainable Way to Manage Xerophytic Thickets in Southwestern Madagascar

Randriamalala

Hervé

2022

Land

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Spiny thickets or xerophytic thickets (XTs) are a type of shrubby vegetation found in the far south and southwest of Madagascar, the driest parts of the island. This type of vegetation, which is rich in endemic animal and plant species, is endangered. Extensive local goat breeding (Capra hircus, for meat and milk production) based on XT browsing is an important source of household income. The aim of this paper is to analyse the possibility of using improved goat breeding as an alternative to wood charcoal (WC) production and slash-and-burn agriculture (SBA), which are unsustainable activities. The literature on (i) the impacts of SBA, WC production, and goat browsing on the XT ecosystem and (ii) the income provided by these three activities is reviewed to determine the sustainability level of improved goat husbandry. SBA and WC production reduced XT biomass and XT cover area, while goat browsing alone, at a stocking rate of one head per hectare, did not affect XT leaf biomass production and shrub regeneration. Furthermore, batch breeding and flushing techniques provided the highest annual income, mainly from the sale of surplus animal products. This improved goat husbandry may be a sustainable alternative to WC production. However, increasing the current stocking rate is necessary to surpass the combined income of WC production and SBA. An estimation of the XT carrying capacity would offer a basis to assess whether this ecosystem would support a higher stocking rate.

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Reproductive and economic performance of local livestock in southwestern Madagascar: Potentials and constraints of a highly extensive system

Cited by 13 publications

References 21 publications

Timing and Extent of Inbreeding in African Goats

Timing and Extent of Inbreeding in African Goats

Widespread zoophagy and detection of Plasmodium spp. in Anopheles mosquitoes in southeastern Madagascar

Goat Breeding: A Possible Sustainable Way to Manage Xerophytic Thickets in Southwestern Madagascar

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