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The reaction of grazing sheep and cattle to the presence of dung from the same or the other species
Author(s) -
FORBES T. D. A.,
HODGSON J.
Publication year - 1985
Publication title -
grass and forage science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.716
H-Index - 56
eISSN - 1365-2494
pISSN - 0142-5242
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-2494.1985.tb01735.x
Subject(s) - grazing , biology , transect , agronomy , perennial plant , cattle grazing , pasture , zoology , ecology
An experiment is described in which steers and wether sheep separately grazed perennial ryegrass swards, managed so that half of each sward had previously been grazed by sheep and half by cattle. The influence of the presence of dung from the same or the other species on grazing patterns and herbage utilization was examined. Regression analysis of extended sward height along transects laid across dung pats after grazing revealed that the limits of the rejected herbage were more clearly defined around cattle dung than sheep dung when grazed by cattle, whereas there was less distinct avoidance of herbage around both cattle and sheep dung when grazed by sheep. As grazing proceeded there was a progressive movement of animals from the half of the plot previously grazed by the same species to the half previously grazed by the opposite species, and this movement was more marked in the cattle than in the sheep. It was concluded that under mixed grazing a greater proportion of the herbage would be available to the sheep giving them an advantage over the cattle.