50 Using GPS and Genomic Technology to Provide a More Accurate Estimate of Bull Power in Western Intermountain Beef Systems

2021 ◽  
Vol 99 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. 28-29
Author(s):  
Matthew D Garcia ◽  
Kim Chapman ◽  
Kevin Heaton ◽  
Josh Dallin ◽  
Kerry Rood ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Accurate Estimate ◽  
Intermountain West ◽  
High Performing ◽  
Gps Collars ◽  
Gps Technology ◽  
Parentage Testing ◽  
Northern Arizona ◽  
Hair Samples ◽  
Breeding Seasons

Abstract The objective of this study was to utilize GPS technology and genomic parentage testing to provide a more accurate measurement of bull power in the intermountain west beef production system. Breeding seasons are typically conducted on large, remote pastures, leading to current estimates of bull:cow ratios (1:20 or 1:25) possibly being inaccurate. With advances in genetic testing, parentage of calves can be obtained allowing producers to review which calves were sired from specific bulls, or how many cows each bull serviced (bull power). Our study fit 5 bulls from the same herd with GPS collars and collected hair samples for future DNA extraction prior to the 2018 breeding season. Bull movement was tracked over a 90-day breeding season on a large grazing allotment on the southern Utah and northern Arizona border. The GPS collars collected measurements of total distance traveled per day and distance traveled away from water, along with geocoordinates. Upon completion of the breeding season, collars were removed and data retrieved. At calving, biological material was collected and parentage testing of 104 calves was conducted and parentage determined. Results of parentage testing revealed that actually 6 bulls sired calves during the 2018 breeding season. The ranch’s bulls sired 72 (69%) calves (30, 16, 14, 10 and 2 calves, respectively). Thirty-two (31%) calves were sired by bulls from herds that grazed nearby. Interesting to note is the producer was unaware of any non-herd bulls co-mingling with this herd. While results from the current study are very preliminary, they do validate the importance of verifying bull power and sire identification to critically evaluate sire performance and increase the accuracy of selection in breeding replacements. The information presented herein may prove useful as a future selection tool to identify bulls that are high performing during breeding season in the intermountain west.

scholarly journals PSVII-22 Using GPS and genomic technologies to provide a more accurate estimate of bull power in western intermountain beef systems

2020 ◽  
Vol 98 (Supplement_4) ◽  
pp. 304-305
Author(s):  
Matthew D Garcia ◽  
Kim Chapman ◽  
Kevin Heaton ◽  
Eric Thacker ◽  
Lee Rickords ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Dna Extraction ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
Accurate Estimate ◽  
Intermountain West ◽  
Gps Collars ◽  
Parentage Testing ◽  
Genomic Technologies ◽  
Hair Samples ◽  
Breeding Seasons

Abstract The objective of this study was to utilize GPS technology and genomic parentage testing to provide a more accurate measurement of bull power in Intermountain West beef production systems. Breeding seasons in the Intermountain West are typically conducted on expansive pastures, leading to current bull:cow ratios (1:20 or 1:25) possibly being inaccurate. Traditionally, producers maintain enough bulls to satisfy established bull cow ratios, but there was not further investigation into which calves were sired from specific bulls or how many cows each bull was actually servicing. Thus, the current study fitted five bulls with GPS collars and collected hair samples for future DNA extraction prior to the 2018 breeding season. Bull movement was tracked over a 90-day breeding season on a large grazing allotment in southern Utah and northern Arizona. The GPS collars allowed for tracking total distance traveled per day, and distance traveled away from water. Upon completion of the breeding season, collars were removed and data downloaded. A total of 104 potential offspring of the collared bulls were branded, and had ear notches collected for DNA extraction and parentage analyses. Results of parentage testing revealed that actually six bulls sired calves during the 2018 breeding season. The cooperating ranch’s bulls sired 30, 16, 14, 10 and 2 calves respectively. However, a neighboring operation’s bull sired 32 calves in the cooperator’s herd during that same season. While results from the current study are very preliminary, they do validate the importance of verifying bull power and sire identification in order to critically evaluate sire performance and increase the accuracy of selection in breeding replacements. The information presented herein may prove useful as a future selection tool to identify bulls that are high performers during the breeding season in the Intermountain West.

scholarly journals Evidence for use of both capital and income breeding strategies in the mangrove tree crab, Aratus pisonii

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jade Carver ◽  
Morgan Meidell ◽  
Zachary J. Cannizzo ◽  
Blaine D. Griffen
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Breeding Strategy ◽  
Reproductive Period ◽  
Breeding Strategies ◽  
Mangrove Tree ◽  
Income Breeding ◽  
Aratus Pisonii ◽  
Breeding Seasons ◽  
And Storage ◽  
Capital And Income Breeding

AbstractTwo common strategies organisms use to finance reproduction are capital breeding (using energy stored prior to reproduction) and income breeding (using energy gathered during the reproductive period). Understanding which of these two strategies a species uses can help in predicting its population dynamics and how it will respond to environmental change. Brachyuran crabs have historically been considered capital breeders as a group, but recent evidence has challenged this assumption. Here, we focus on the mangrove tree crab, Aratus pisonii, and examine its breeding strategy on the Atlantic Florida coast. We collected crabs during and after their breeding season (March–October) and dissected them to discern how energy was stored and utilized for reproduction. We found patterns of reproduction and energy storage that are consistent with both the use of stored energy (capital) and energy acquired (income) during the breeding season. We also found that energy acquisition and storage patterns that supported reproduction were influenced by unequal tidal patterns associated with the syzygy tide inequality cycle. Contrary to previous assumptions for crabs, we suggest that species of crab that produce multiple clutches of eggs during long breeding seasons (many tropical and subtropical species) may commonly use income breeding strategies.

scholarly journals Density and Flock Size of the Raven (Corvus corax) In the Orawa - Nowy Targ Basin During Non-Breeding Season

Ring ◽  
2006 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 119-125
Author(s):  
Michał Ciach ◽  
Dominik Wikar ◽  
Małgorzata Bylicka
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Early Spring ◽  
Food Resources ◽  
High Density ◽  
Line Transect ◽  
Flock Size ◽  
Early Winter ◽  
Corvus Corax ◽  
Line Transect Method ◽  
Breeding Seasons

Density and Flock Size of the Raven (Corvus corax) In the Orawa - Nowy Targ Basin During Non-Breeding Season During the 2002/2003-2004/2005 non-breeding seasons the density of the Raven in the open habitats of the Orawa - Nowy Targ Basin was studied by line transect method. The results were analysed in four periods (autumn, early winter, winter and early spring). The median density of Ravens did not differ significantly between individual periods and was respectively: 3.5, 3.8, 4.8 and 3.8 indiv. / 10 km. Number of birds during particular controls varied from 1.0 to 24.8 indiv. / 10 km. However, while excluding flocks, the median density of single individuals and pairs of the Raven was considerably lower and in subsequent periods reached respectively: 2.2, 2.4, 2.2 and 1.7 indiv. / 10 km. Flock size did not differ significantly between individual periods. Single individuals and, less often, groups of two birds were recorded mostly. Small (3-5 indiv.) and medium (6-15 indiv.) flocks were recorded rarely and large flocks (16 indiv. and above) - only exceptionally. The high density and strong fluctuations of abundance of Ravens were determined by flocks presence, which was probably linked to irregular occurrence of food resources.

Phenotypic plasticity of the montane vole (Microtus montanus) in unpredictable environments

1992 ◽  
Vol 70 (11) ◽  
pp. 2121-2124 ◽  
Author(s):  
Norman C. Negus ◽  
Patricia J. Berger ◽  
Aelita J. Pinter
Keyword(s):  
Phenotypic Plasticity ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Growth Rates ◽  
Adaptive Strategy ◽  
Severe Drought ◽  
Microtus Montanus ◽  
Age Cohort ◽  
Montane Meadow ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Breeding Seasons

From 1987 to 1989, the cohort dynamics of Microtus montanus populations were studied at two montane meadow sites approximately 160 km apart, in northwestern Wyoming. The 1987 and 1988 breeding seasons differed markedly from each other. In 1987, melt off occurred in April, and the first cohort was born in May (cohort 1). The entire breeding season was favorable owing to frequent rainfall throughout the summer. Cohort 1 animals grew rapidly and females began breeding at 4–5 weeks of age. Likewise, cohort 2 (June) animals exhibited rapid growth and females were breeding at 7–8 weeks of age. Cohort 3 (July and August) animals grew more slowly and most entered the winter as prepubertal animals of subadult size. At the end of the summer, cohort 3 animals represented >70% of the voles recruited during the breeding season. In 1988, following melt off in late April, precipitation was below normal and the situation intensified to severe drought through the summer. The growth rates of cohort 1 and 2 animals were significantly lower than 1987 growth rates, and very few females attained sexual maturity. At the end of the summer, cohort 3 animals represented <25% of the total recruitment at both study sites. Such apparent phenotypic plasticity of growth and maturation appears to be an evolved adaptive strategy that is responsive to several environmental cues. Both study sites, although widely separated, exhibited virtually identical patterns throughout the study.

Flexibility of nuptial colouration in a unique ecotype of Threespine Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus)

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rachel Corney ◽  
Anne Haley ◽  
Laura Weir
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Gasterosteus Aculeatus ◽  
Colour Change ◽  
Threespine Stickleback ◽  
Relative Role ◽  
Mate Quality ◽  
Breeding Seasons ◽  
Potential Signal ◽  
Intersexual Competition

Nuptial colouration in animals may serve as a signal of competitor and/or mate quality during breeding. In many temperate fishes, nuptial colouration develops during discrete breeding seasons and is a target of sexual selection. We examine nuptial colouration and behaviour of a unique ecotype of Threespine Stickleback (Gasterosteus aculeatus Linnaeus, 1758), wherein males turn from dull brown-grey to pearlescent white during the breeding season. The main goal of this work was to determine the relative role of white colouration in intersexual competition and mate choice. In a combination of a field and laboratory work, we found that males are brightest white when engaging in courtship activities in the presence of a female; this indicates that white colouration may be primarily related to enhancing signalling during mate attraction. White colouration intensity increased as the breeding season progressed and may be related to an influx of conspecifics. Colour change from cryptic grey to bright white occurred rapidly (< 90 seconds) and may be deployed to enhance behavioural signals. We conclude that bright white colouration in the white ecotype is a potential signal of mate quality and may have evolved from a previously existing capacity for colour plasticity in common Threespine Stickleback.

“Data for the Problem of Evolution in Man. V. On the Correlation between Duration of Life and the Number of Offspring”

1901 ◽  
Vol 35 (6) ◽  
pp. 458-479
Author(s):  
M. Beeton ◽  
G. U. Yule ◽  
Karl Pearson
Keyword(s):  
Natural Selection ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
The Other ◽  
Similar Statement ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Darwinian Theory ◽  
Theory Of Evolution ◽  
Biennial Plants ◽  
Long Life ◽  
Breeding Seasons

According to the Darwinian theory of evolution the members of a community less fitted to their environment are removed by death. But this process of natural selection would not permanently modify a race, if the members thus removed were able before death to propagate their species in average numbers. It then becomes an important question to ascertain how far duration of life is related to fertility. In the case of many insects death can interfere only with their single chance of offspring; they live or not for their one breeding season only. A similar statement holds good with regard to annual and biennial plants. In such cases there might still be a correlation between duration of life and fertility, but it would be of the indirect character, which we actually find in the case of men and women living beyond sixty years of age—a long life means better physique and better physique increased fertility. On the other hand, there is a direct correlation of fertility and duration of life in the case of those animals which generally survive a number of breeding seasons, and it is this correlation which we had at first in view when investigating the influence of duration of life on fertility in man. The discovery of the indirect factor in the correlation referred to above was therefore a point of much interest. For it seems to show that the physique fittest to survive is really the physique which is in itself (and independently of the duration of life) most fecund.

scholarly journals Effect of exogenous progesterone treatment on ovarian steroid hormones and oxidant and antioxidant biomarkers during peak and low breeding seasons in dromedary she-camel

2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 542-552
Author(s):  
Amal M. Abo El-Maaty ◽  
Ragab H. Mohamed ◽  
Heba F. Hozyen ◽  
Adel M. El-Kattan ◽  
Mona A. Mahmoud ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Steroid Hormones ◽  
Breeding Season ◽  
Management Tool ◽  
Seasonal Effect ◽  
Glutathione S Transferase ◽  
Sod Activity ◽  
Blood Concentrations ◽  
Exogenous Progesterone ◽  
Antioxidant Markers ◽  
Breeding Seasons

Background: Research about the effects of progesterone (P4) and the relationship of P4 to oxidative stress has been achieved in ruminants but not enough in camels Aim: This study evaluated the effect of exogenous P4 hormone using CIDR for 7 days on blood concentrations of steroid hormones and oxidative status of dromedary she-camels during peak and low breeding seasons. Materials and Methods: The present work was conducted on ten dark dromedary she-camels which were synchronized using a controlled internal drug release (CIDR) for 7 days as a reproductive management tool during peak breeding (November-April) and low breeding season (May-October). The blood samples were collected each other day from CIDR insertion until the end of experiment 5 days after the removal of CIDR. Camels were examined for P4, estradiol (E2), and testosterone (T) as well as malondialdehyde (MDA) as indicator of lipid peroxidation and nitric oxide, superoxide dismutase (SOD), and glutathione-S-transferase as antioxidant markers. Results: Results revealed that P4 was higher during peak breeding season than low breeding season. While the levels of P4 increased during CIDR insertion and declined at CIDR removal and thereafter during breeding season, its concentrations declined after CIDR application during the non-breeding season. On the other hand, blood E2 and testosterone levels decreased after CIDR insertion in both high and low breeding seasons with higher serum E2 concentrations during the peak than the low breeding season. MDA concentrations and SOD activities were significantly (p<0.05) high on day 3 after CIDR insertion during the breeding and non-breeding seasons. During both the seasons, GSH levels decreased after CIDR removal in camels. However, MDA was lower during non-breeding season than high breeding season with no seasonal effect on SOD activity. Conclusion: Exogenous P4 treatment through CIDR in dromedary camels could be more efficient during breeding season than non-breeding season, and effects on circulating oxidant/antioxidant biomarkers and their return to normal levels might refer to the adaptation of camels to CIDR by modulating their oxidant and antioxidant levels.

The Flatback Turtle, Chelonia depressa, in Queensland: Reproductive Periodicity, Philopatry and Recruitment

1984 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 579 ◽  
Author(s):  
CJ Limpus ◽  
A Fleay ◽  
V Baker
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Sea Turtles ◽  
Recruitment Rate ◽  
Southern Limit ◽  
Total Fecundity ◽  
Eastern Australia ◽  
Reproductive Life ◽  
Breeding Seasons ◽  
Remigration Interval ◽  
High Degree

The Bundaberg coast is the southern limit for reproduction by Chelonia depressa in eastern Australia. Here the species lays 2.84 � 0.78 (mean � SD) clutches per breeding season with a renesting interval of 15.99 � 1.89 days. When successful nesting does not occur on a nesting crawl the female returns after 1.17 � 1.07 d for another attempt. The mean remigration interval is 2.65 � 0.92 years and the average female is estimated to have a reproductive life of between 2.05 and 2.55 breeding seasons. The estimated annual recruitment rate of neonate nesting females into this colony is 27.2 � 10.8% of the population. The females return repetitively with a high degree of accuracy to the same small nesting beach within a single breeding season and in successive breeding seasons. The reproductive strategy of C. depressa compared with that of other sea turtles appears to involve an increase in hatchling size, to reduce predation, achieved by laying relatively large eggs. However, only a few small clutches are laid in a breeding season, so that seasonal fecundity for the species is low relative to that in other sea turtles such as C. mydas. Because its reproductive life is longer, C. depressa has a total fecundity only slightly less than that of C. mydas.

Effects of immunization against recombinant bovine inhibin α subunit on circulating concentrations of gonadotrophins in ewes

1989 ◽  
Vol 120 (1) ◽  
pp. 59-65 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. K. Findlay ◽  
B. Doughton ◽  
D. M. Robertson ◽  
R. G. Forage
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Untreated Control ◽  
Luteal Phase ◽  
Plasma Concentrations ◽  
Follicular Phase ◽  
Ovulation Rate ◽  
Α Subunit ◽  
Keyhole Limpet Haemocyanin ◽  
Fourfold Increase ◽  
Breeding Seasons

ABSTRACT Immunization of ewes against a pure recombinant preparation of the α subunit of bovine inhibin (α-bI) resulted in a three- to fourfold increase in ovulation rate, associated with antibodies in plasma recognizing pure native 31 kDa inhibin. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of this immunization on basal and GnRH-stimulated plasma concentrations of FSH and LH in ewes during the anoestrous and breeding seasons. The groups were untreated control ewes (n = 5), control ewes treated with keyhole limpet haemocyanin (KLH alone, n = 4), ewes treated with α-bI alone (n = 4) and α-bI–KLH conjugate-treated ewes (n = 3). There were no effects of immunization on basal FSH or LH in anoestrous ewes, despite the presence of antibodies recognizing 31 kDa inhibin. In the breeding season, immunization against α-bI resulted in increased basal (follicular phase, P < 0·1; luteal phase P < 0·05) and GnRH-stimulated (follicular phase only, P < 0·001) release of FSH, but not LH. The data are compatible with the hypotheses that the increase in ovulation rate in immunized ewes is due to an increase in circulating FSH concentrations and that inhibin may only have a major peripheral influence on FSH in sheep during the breeding season. Journal of Endocrinology (1989) 120, 59–65

Song stability and neighbour recognition in a migratory songbird, the black redstart

Behaviour ◽  
2014 ◽  
Vol 151 (4) ◽  
pp. 435-453 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tudor I. Draganoiu ◽  
Aurélien Moreau ◽  
Lucie Ravaux ◽  
Wim Bonckaert ◽  
Nicolas Mathevon
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Discrimination Ability ◽  
Return Rates ◽  
Migratory Songbird ◽  
Dear Enemy Effect ◽  
Black Redstart ◽  
Phoenicurus Ochruros ◽  
One Year ◽  
Breeding Seasons

Territorial male songbirds have the ability to discriminate between the songs of their neighbours and those of strangers and for a few species it has been shown that they maintain this ability from one breeding season to the next. To better understand the acoustic basis of this long-term discrimination ability we studied song stability across two breeding seasons in a migratory songbird with high inter-annual return rates and territory stability, the black redstart, Phoenicurus ochruros. Strophe repertoires of 14 males (≥2 years old) were stable from one breeding season to the next and high strophe sharing occurred for males within the same group of houses or hamlets (81%) in contrast to only limited sharing between different hamlets (15%). However, subtle differences exist between the renditions of the same strophe sung by neighbouring males and these differences equally show an inter-annual stability, providing an acoustic basis for long-term discrimination abilities. Playback tests showed the existence of a strong dear-enemy effect: males reacted less aggressively to the familiar, often shared song of a neighbour than to a stranger unshared song and this pattern was maintained when birds returned from migration one year later. We discuss on one side the possible mechanisms leading to the observed patterns of song sharing and on the other side the significance of stable vocal signatures for neighbour recognition.

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