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Oliveira CS, Dias HRS, Camargo AJDR, Mourão A, Feuchard VLDS, Muller MD, Brandão FZ, Nogueira LAG, Verneque RDS, Saraiva NZ, Camargo LSDA. Livestock-Forest integrated system attenuates deleterious heat stress effects in bovine oocytes. Anim Reprod Sci 2024; 268:107568. [PMID: 39106562 DOI: 10.1016/j.anireprosci.2024.107568] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/04/2023] [Revised: 06/28/2024] [Accepted: 07/25/2024] [Indexed: 08/09/2024]
Abstract
Global warming poses significant challenges to the fertility of tropical dairy cattle. One promising approach to mitigate heat stress effects on reproductive function and reduce the carbon footprint is the use of integrated livestock-forest (ILF) systems. The aim of this study was to investigate the effects of two different systems, namely Full Sun (FS) and ILF, on maternal hyperthermia and oocyte quality of Holstein and Girolando heifers during the tropical summer season. The temperature-humidity index (THI) data revealed intense heat stress during the experiment. Both the system (P<0.01) and the breed (P<0.01) factors had a significant impact on vaginal temperature, being hyperthermia more pronounced in the FS system and in the Holstein breed. Over the five time points collected at a 33-day interval, we observed distinct patterns for ILF (P=0.65) and FS (P<0.001) systems, suggesting an adaptive response in animals kept in FS systems. Furthermore, oocyte quality assessment revealed an effect of the system for oocyte diameter (P<0.001) and levels of IGFBP2 (P<0.001), and caspase 3 levels showed a decrease in ILF compared to FS for both Holstein (P<0.001) and Girolando (P<0.001) breeds. Collectively, these parameters indicate that oocyte quality during the summer months was superior in animals maintained in the ILF system. In conclusion, the ILF system demonstrated promising results in attenuating maternal hyperthermia and mitigating its effects on oocyte quality. Additionally, our observations suggest that animals in the FS system may exhibit an adaptive response to heat stress.
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Affiliation(s)
- Clara Slade Oliveira
- Embrapa Dairy Cattle, 610 Eugenio do Nascimento Ave., Juiz de Fora, MG 36038-330, Brazil
| | - Hugo Rocha Sabença Dias
- Embrapa Dairy Cattle, 610 Eugenio do Nascimento Ave., Juiz de Fora, MG 36038-330, Brazil; Universidade Federal Fluminense - UFF, Faculdade de Veterinária, Rua Vital Brazil Filho, 64, Santa Rosa, Niterói, RJ 24230-340, Brazil
| | - Agostinho Jorge Dos Reis Camargo
- Agricultural Research Company of the Rio de Janeiro State (PESAGRO RIO), São Boa Ventura Av., 770, Fonseca, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro 24120-19, Brazil
| | - Anderson Mourão
- Agricultural Research Company of the Rio de Janeiro State (PESAGRO RIO), São Boa Ventura Av., 770, Fonseca, Niterói, Rio de Janeiro 24120-19, Brazil
| | | | - Marcelo Dias Muller
- Embrapa Dairy Cattle, 610 Eugenio do Nascimento Ave., Juiz de Fora, MG 36038-330, Brazil
| | - Felipe Zandonadi Brandão
- Universidade Federal Fluminense - UFF, Faculdade de Veterinária, Rua Vital Brazil Filho, 64, Santa Rosa, Niterói, RJ 24230-340, Brazil
| | - Luiz Altamiro Garcia Nogueira
- Universidade Federal Fluminense - UFF, Faculdade de Veterinária, Rua Vital Brazil Filho, 64, Santa Rosa, Niterói, RJ 24230-340, Brazil
| | - Rui da Silva Verneque
- Embrapa Dairy Cattle, 610 Eugenio do Nascimento Ave., Juiz de Fora, MG 36038-330, Brazil
| | - Naiara Zoccal Saraiva
- Embrapa Dairy Cattle, 610 Eugenio do Nascimento Ave., Juiz de Fora, MG 36038-330, Brazil
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Deniz M, De-Sousa KT, Vieira FMC, Vale MMD, Dittrich JR, Daros RR, Hötzel MJ. A systematic review of the effects of silvopastoral system on thermal environment and dairy cows' behavioral and physiological responses. INTERNATIONAL JOURNAL OF BIOMETEOROLOGY 2023; 67:409-422. [PMID: 36680629 DOI: 10.1007/s00484-023-02431-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Revised: 12/08/2022] [Accepted: 01/11/2023] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Does the silvopastoral system (SPS) promote a satisfactory thermal environment for dairy cows to perform their natural behaviors and perform a suitable thermoregulatory function? To answer this, peer-reviewed articles, written in English and evaluating the effects of silvopastoral systems on thermal environment, dairy cows' behavior, and physiology were used in this systematic review; additionally, a bibliometric approach was performed. Web of Science and Google Scholar were used to compile the literature. The resulting articles (1448) underwent a 4-step appraisal process and resulted in 19 articles that fitted our inclusion criteria. Microclimate variables and thermal comfort indicators were the most researched topics (discussed in 89% of studies); 47% of studies addressed cattle behavior and 36% physiological responses. Our review highlights different benefits of silvopastoral systems for grazing dairy cows. For example, the SPS provides a more comfortable thermal environment than treeless pasture, which increases feeding behaviors; furthermore, dairy cows in SPS show lower drinking events, surface temperature, and respiratory rate than cows raised in treeless pasture. However, for nine of the variables related to cows' behavior (e.g., resting, rumination) and physiology responses (e.g., internal temperature), the results of the studies were unclear. Furthermore, behaviors associated with lying down (e.g., idling and rumination) and milk production in SPS were explored only in six and two studies, respectively. These findings provide consistent evidence that the silvopastoral systems are beneficial to thermal comfort of dairy cows; nonetheless, the effect on cows' behavioral and physiological responses is still scarce and unclear.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matheus Deniz
- Faculdade de Medicina Veterinária e Zootecnia, Universidade Estadual Paulista, Botucatu, São Paulo, Brazil.
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia, Dep. de Zootecnia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil.
- Grupo de Estudos em Biometeorologia, Universidade Tecnológica Federal do Paraná, Dois Vizinhos, Paraná, Brazil.
| | - Karolini Tenffen De-Sousa
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia, Dep. de Zootecnia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | | | - Marcos Martinez do Vale
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia, Dep. de Zootecnia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | - João Ricardo Dittrich
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Zootecnia, Dep. de Zootecnia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Ruan Rolnei Daros
- Programa de Pós-Graduação em Ciência Animal, Escola de Medicina e Ciências da Vida, Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Paraná, Curitiba, Paraná, Brazil
| | - Maria José Hötzel
- Laboratório de Etologia Aplicada e Bem-estar Animal, Dep. de Zootecnia e Desenvolvimento Rural, Universidade Federal de Santa Catarina, Florianopolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil
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Effects of tree arrangements of silvopasture system on behaviour and performance of cattle: a systematic review. ANNALS OF ANIMAL SCIENCE 2023. [DOI: 10.2478/aoas-2023-0002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/03/2023]
Abstract
Abstract
This review aimed to provide a critical and systematic evaluation of the scientific literature about the effect of tree arrangements of the silvopasture system on the thermal environment, behaviour, and performance of cattle. We conducted a search using Web of Science and Google Scholar to identify the key literature of the theme. Peer-reviewed published articles written in English, comparing one or more tree arrangements of SPS to treeless pasture or comparing shaded and sunny areas within the SPS, were selected. The resulting manuscripts (n=191) underwent a four-step PRISMA appraisal process. This process resulted in a final sample of 37 articles, which were used for recording metadata, bibliometric analysis, and assessment of the results, using the software R. Of the 37 articles, 20 studies evaluated dairy cattle (behaviour: 14; performance: 7) and 17 evaluated beef cattle (behaviour: 6; performance: 12). The main behaviours evaluated were grazing (95%) and ruminating (90%), while weight gain (89%) was the main performance variable evaluated. The co-occurrence network analysis highlighted that the studies related the animals’ response to improving the thermal environment promoted by silvopasture systems. The main difference among tree arrangements evaluated by the studies was tree density, which ranged from 5 to 800 trees/ha; most studies covered SPS with row of trees (single row, n=16 and multiple rows, n=19). Most studies (n=32) were carried out in Brazil. The evidence of this review showed that regardless of tree arrangement, the silvopasture system improves the thermal environment for cattle, although some effects on behaviour and performance are inconclusive.
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da Silva WC, da Silva ÉBR, dos Santos MRP, Camargo Junior RNC, Barbosa AVC, da Silva JAR, Vinhote JA, de Sousa EDV, Lourenço Júnior JDB. Behavior and thermal comfort of light and dark coat dairy cows in the Eastern Amazon. Front Vet Sci 2022; 9:1006093. [PMID: 36187817 PMCID: PMC9516290 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2022.1006093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/28/2022] [Accepted: 08/22/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
This study aimed to evaluate the behavior and thermal comfort of 20 Girolando cows (5/8-H/G), with light and dark coats, in the wettest period of the year, in Santarém, Pará, Brazil, in pasture with access to shade, and plenty of drinking water and mineral salt. Animal behavior categories were computed for 12 h a day, on 3 days in a row, by trained observers. Three day shifts were considered: Morning (6:00 a.m. to 9:55 a.m.), Intermediate (10:00 a.m. to 01:55 p.m.) and Afternoon (2:00 p.m. to 05:55 p.m.). The Temperature Index (TI), the Black Globe Humidity Index (BGHI) and the Comfort Index (CI) were calculated to measure thermal comfort. At all times studied, BGHI pointed that the environment was outside the thermal comfort zone. Dark-coated animals spent more 34.26% of the time in activities in the shade. The light-coated animals remained more 11.88% of the time in the sun, performing their natural behaviors. Both light and dark coat animals remained more 77 and 74.44% of the time in the sun, respectively. The behavior “in the sun while grazing” was the most evident, in both coats, in the studied shifts. The behaviors “in the shade while walking” and “in the shade while standing idle” were more evident (p < 0.01) in dark-coated cattle. The grazing behavior was higher in animals with dark coat (p < 0.05). In all evaluated shifts, there was a positive correlation between the behavior “in the sun while grazing” with the CI (r = 0.44211; p < 0.0305). Behaviors performed in the shade, such as “idleness while lying down,” “ruminating while lying down and standing up,” and behaviors “in the sun,” “idleness while lying down” and “ruminating while lying down,” were negatively correlated with CI. It is concluded that, even in the wettest period of the year, in the Eastern Amazon, Girolando dairy cows are exposed to hot environments, which causes thermal discomfort and changes in their natural behavior, as they spend more time standing in shaded areas, usually in rumination. Also, light-coated cows spend more time in the sun, while dark-coated cows spend more time in the shade. Thus, light-coated cows tend to have health and zootechnical performance negatively affected.
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Affiliation(s)
- Welligton Conceição da Silva
- Institute of Animal Health and Production, Federal Rural University of the Amazon, Belem, Pará, Brazil
- *Correspondence: Welligton Conceição da Silva
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Guimarães Júnior R, de Oliveira AF, Ferreira IC, Pereira LGR, Tomich TR, Menezes GL, Vilela L, Lana ÂMQ. Methane emissions and milk yields from zebu cows under integrated systems. Livest Sci 2022. [DOI: 10.1016/j.livsci.2022.105038] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Dias Batista PH, de Almeida GLP, Pandorfi H, da Silva MV, da Silva RAB, da Silva JLB, Santana TC, Rodrigues JADM. Thermal images to predict the thermal comfort index for Girolando heifers in the Brazilian semiarid region. Livest Sci 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.livsci.2021.104667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
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Shade Modifies Behavioral and Physiological Responses of Low to Medium Production Dairy Cows at Pasture in an Integrated Crop-Livestock-Forest System. Animals (Basel) 2021; 11:ani11082411. [PMID: 34438867 PMCID: PMC8388728 DOI: 10.3390/ani11082411] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2021] [Revised: 08/01/2021] [Accepted: 08/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Under conditions of high temperature, humidity, and incidence of solar radiation, dairy cows use behavioral changes as a strategy to decrease the metabolic heat production at pasture. The objective of this study was to evaluate the behavioral and physiological responses of Gyr and Girolando (5/8 Holstein 3/8 Gyr, and ½ Holstein ½ Gyr) dairy cows submitted to environments with and without shade. The experiment was conducted at Embrapa Cerrados (Technology Center for Dairy Zebu breeds-CTZL), Brasilia, Distrito Federal-Brazil, with 48 Gyr and Girolando cows total in the lactation group, with low to medium milk production, in full sun or shade with Eucalyptus urograndis (267 plants/ha-1). The physiological and behavioral characteristics evaluated were panting score, superficial temperature, and time spent grazing, ruminating, and lying down. Other traits included skin and coat thickness, hair diameter, density and length, and predominant coat color. In addition, body measurements, such as body length, the height of withers, chest circumference, and shin circumference, were measured. Shaded cows had 34% longer rumination times than cows in full sun (p = 0.01). With a temperature-humidity index ranging from 79 to 83, the rumination time was 1.7 times higher in cows under shade (p = 0.01) during a 24-h period of observation. There were no significant differences in the grazing time between the environments, but lying time was 23% longer in cows under the sun (p = 0.01). The panting score was not influenced by the environment (p = 0.17). Girolando cows had a 35% higher panting score than Gyr cows (p = 0.01) regardless of the environment. The panting score increased two and a half times during the afternoon compared with the morning (p = 0.01). The surface and rectal core temperatures had significant differences between treatments and time of the day. Body measurements were not different between cows in both environments, but there was a difference between breeds. The use of trees in pastures with a silvopastoral system for dairy zebu cows is indicated to improve grazing behavior, as well as time spent ruminating and lying down.
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