Spatial distribution of feces and estimates of nitrogen return by dairy cows on mombasa grass pastures

Abstract

-The objective of this study was to identify the pattern of deposition of feces by supplemented crossbred dairy cows after the lactation peak on cultivated areas under levels of intensification of the system and its effects on nitrogen cycling, with the aid of geostatistics, in the rainy period. Treatments were composed of two levels of nitrogen fertilization (equivalent to 400 and 800 kg N/ha/year) and two types of animals, according to the daily milk production. Geostatistical and descriptive analyses of the data were conducted. The data presented positive coefficients of skewness and platykurtic kurtosis. For the coefficient of variation, there was elevated alteration, with rest areas showing higher values and paddocks with a higher level of fertilization showing lower values.The climate factors radiation, temperature and relative humidity significantly influenced the dispersion and location of feces. As to the degree of spatial dependence, the classification varied from moderated to strong. The range was from 14.0 to 12.7 m for the rest areas and paddocks, respectively. Fertilization and concentrate supply affected the deposition and loss of nitrogen via feces, elevating its values as the nutritional uptake is elevated. Fecal deposition showed heterogeneity, with areas of greater concentration such as shades, entrance of the paddocks and threshing floor, showing deposition peaks that reach 1,051.2 kg N/ha/year.

Measuring larval nematode contamination on cattle pastures: Comparing two herbage sampling methods

“…This is to be expected, as faecal pats are not evenly distributed across pasture (MacDiarmid and Watkin, 1972;Gruner and Sauve, 1982;Hirata et al, 2011;da Silva et al, 2013) and as most L 3 do not migrate considerable distances away from the faecal pat (Gruner and Sauve, 1982;Stromberg, 1997). The extent of the aggregation of faecal pats varies in time during the pasture season (MacDiarmid and Watkin, 1972;Gruner and Sauve, 1982) and so does the level of larval aggregation (Flota-Bañuelos et al, 2013).…”

Distribuição Espacial Das Propriedades Do Solo, Produção

“…A escolha do local de pastejo pelos animais pode ser afetada pelo tamanho do pasto, topografia, posição das cercas, proximidade e facilidade de acesso a locais atrativos como aguada, cochos, sombra, além de locais com maior disponibilidade de forragem e nutrientes minerais disponíveis nas plantas (MELO et al, 2015;PÁSCOA e COSTA, 2007;TREVISAN et al, 2005), esses fatores influenciam na distribuição heterogênea das excretas no pasto (SILVA et al, 2013), bem como no aumento da não homogeneidade da área. Informações sobre o comportamento animal e sua localização dentro do pasto podem auxiliar para delimitar locais e ambientes a serem utilizados pelos animais em função das necessidades, bem como caracterizar a heterogeneidade local com distribuição de insumos de acordo com área, buscando a homogeneização da área e o equilíbrio na relação planta-animal .…”