Effects of Long-Term Grazing on Feed Intake and Digestibility of Cattle in Meadow Steppe
Lulu Hou,
Xiaoping Xin,
Beibei Shen,
Qi Qin,
Ahmed Ibrahim Ahmed Altome,
Yousif Mohamed Zainelabdeen Hamed,
Ruirui Yan,
Serekpaev Nurlan,
Nogayev Adilbek,
Akhylbekova Balzhan,
Maira Kussainova,
Amartuvshin Amarjargal,
Wei Fang,
Alim Pulatov,
Wenneng Zhou,
Haixia Sun
Affiliations
Lulu Hou
National Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Xiaoping Xin
National Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Beibei Shen
National Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Qi Qin
National Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Ahmed Ibrahim Ahmed Altome
Agricultural Research Corporation, Wad Madani 126, Sudan
Yousif Mohamed Zainelabdeen Hamed
Agricultural Research Corporation, Wad Madani 126, Sudan
Ruirui Yan
National Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem Observation and Research Station, Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing 100081, China
Serekpaev Nurlan
S. Seifullin Kazakh Agro Technical University, Astana 010000, Kazakhstan
Nogayev Adilbek
LLP “Scientific and Production Center of Grain Farming Named after A.I. Barayev”, Akmola 021600, Kazakhstan
Akhylbekova Balzhan
LLP “Scientific and Production Center of Grain Farming Named after A.I. Barayev”, Akmola 021600, Kazakhstan
Maira Kussainova
Sustainable Agriculture Center, Kazakh National Agrarian Research University, Almaty 050010, Kazakhstan
Amartuvshin Amarjargal
University of the Humanities, Ulaanbaatar P.O. Box 210646/53, Mongolia
Wei Fang
Department of Biology, Pace University, New York, NY 10038, USA
Alim Pulatov
EcoGIS Center, «Tashkent Institute of Irrigation and Agricultural Mechanization Engineers» National Research University (TIIAME NRU), Tashkent 100000, Uzbekistan
Wenneng Zhou
School of Ecology, Environment and Resources, Guangdong University of Technology, Guangzhou 510006, China
Haixia Sun
Northeast Institute of Geography and Agroecology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Changchun 150081, China
(1) Estimation of grazing livestock intake is the basis for studying animal–plant relationships and the nutritional status of grazing livestock and has important implications for grassland composition and productivity. (2) We used the saturated alkanes method to determine the feed intake and vegetation nutrient digestibility of livestock at different grazing intensities and in different months. (3) We found that C31 had the highest concentration in both pasture and fecal output, and the average recovery of C31 was 77.99%. The different grazing intensities significantly affected livestock intake. As the grazing intensity increased, there was a decreasing trend of livestock intake and the highest livestock feed intake was 6.11 kg DM/day in light grazing. With the increase in grazing season months, the highest livestock intake was 6.67 kg DM/day in the cold period in September. The month also had a significant effect on the digestibility of livestock for all nutrient variables when compared to the grazing intensity. Livestock weight and medium palatability species are more important for livestock intake. (4) Our study provides a more accurate measurement of grazing livestock intake, which can be used as a reference for the scientific management of grazing livestock and the rational use of grazing pastures.
