The automatic recording of foraging in ruminants: research into practice

• Autorzy: Rutter S.M.
• Języki publikacji: EN

Abstrakty

EN

Grazing is a cheap and sustainable way to feed ruminant livestock, and is important in maintaining the open grassland landscapes that dominate much of Europe. Researchers have devised several methods to record when and where livestock graze in response to the spatial and temporal heterogeneity of grassland swards. Advances in technology mean that these approaches have the potential for application in decision-support systems to help farmers monitor and manage grazing. Although Global Navigation Satellite System receivers work well in hilly terrain, their high power consumption means that local radio-based positioning systems are potentially more viable for on-farm use. A bioacoustics approach to grazing (i.e. recording and analysing the sound of grazing) has the potential to record when animals are grazing, the plant species being eaten and the amount of herbage consumed. A bioacoustic sensor will probably need to be combined with an accelerometer to detect head movements to overcome the problem of the sound of one animal’s grazing interfering with the analysis of that from a nearby conspecific. The precise monitoring of grazing behaviour and intake should provide farmers with practical tools that help them improve the economic efficiency and environmental sustainability of livestock production.

• Wydawca: -
• Czasopismo: Acta Neurobiologiae Experimentalis
• Rocznik: 2014
• Tom: 74
• Numer: 3
• Opis fizyczny: p.351

Twórcy

autor

Rutter S.M.

• The National Centre for Precision Farming, Harper Adams University, Newport, Shropshire, U.K.