Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-jr42d Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-23T21:22:14.469Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Evaluation of long-chain alcohols as diet composition markers in goats grazing heathland areas

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 October 2011

L. M. M. Ferreira ,
R. Celaya ,
A. S. Santos ,
C. M. V. Guedes ,
M. A. M. Rodrigues ,
R. W. Mayes  and
K. Osoro
L. M. M. Ferreira*
Affiliation:
Departamento de Zootecnia, Centro de Ciência Animal e Veterinária, Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, PO Box 1013, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
R. Celaya
Affiliation:
Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, PO Box 13, 33300 Villaviciosa, Asturias, Spain
A. S. Santos
Affiliation:
Departamento de Zootecnia, Centro de Ciência Animal e Veterinária, Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, PO Box 1013, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
C. M. V. Guedes
Affiliation:
Departamento de Zootecnia, Centro de Ciência Animal e Veterinária, Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, PO Box 1013, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
M. A. M. Rodrigues
Affiliation:
Departamento de Zootecnia, Centro de Ciência Animal e Veterinária, Universidade de Trás-os-Montes e Alto Douro, PO Box 1013, 5001-801 Vila Real, Portugal
R. W. Mayes
Affiliation:
The James Hutton Institute, Craigiebuckler, Aberdeen AB15 8QH, UK
K. Osoro
Affiliation:
Servicio Regional de Investigación y Desarrollo Agroalimentario, PO Box 13, 33300 Villaviciosa, Asturias, Spain
*
†E-mail: lmf@utad.pt
Get access

Abstract

An experiment was conducted to assess the potential of long-chain alcohols (LCOH), in alternative or combined with alkanes and long-chain fatty acids (LCFA), as faecal markers to estimate the diet composition of goats grazing heathland vegetation with associated improved pastures. A total of seven diets were offered across the grazing season. The diets were composed of mixtures of herb species (Lolium perenne and Trifolium repens) and woody species (Erica spp., Calluna vulgaris and Ulex gallii) in an attempt to simulate diet selection of goats on these complex vegetation areas. The diet composition was estimated using LCOH markers alone or combined with alkanes, LCFA and alkanes+LCFA, by least square optimization procedures. The data showed large differences between plant species in their LCOH profile. Generally, plant species showed higher LCOH concentrations than those of alkanes and lower than LCFA markers. Faecal recovery of LCOH was incomplete and increased in a linear manner (P < 0.001) with the carbon-chain length, and was influenced by diet composition and its digestibility. The diet composition estimates based on LCOH alone were more accurate (P < 0.05) than those using alkanes or LCFA alone. Results showed that the combination of LCOH with alkanes, LCFA and alkanes+LCFA resulted in more accurate (P < 0.05) estimates of diet composition, indicating that LCOH provided different discriminatory information to that of alkanes and LCFA, helping in the discrimination of the plant species used in this experiment. Results indicate that correction of faecal LCOH concentrations to incomplete faecal recovery is necessary to obtain more accurate estimates of diet composition. Nevertheless, it seemed that the use of a less accurate recovery correction on LCOH markers had a lower impact on the accuracy of estimates than that of alkanes and LCFA.

Keywords

long-chain alcoholsdiet compositionfaecal markersheathlands
Type
Full Paper
Information
animal , Volume 6 , Issue 4 , April 2012 , pp. 683 - 692
Copyright
Copyright © The Animal Consortium 2011

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Ali, HAM, Mayes, RW, Hector, BL, Ørskov, ER 2005a. Assessment of n-alkanes, long-chain fatty alcohols and long-chain fatty acids as diet composition markers: the concentrations of these compounds in rangeland species from Sudan. Animal Feed Science and Technology 121, 257–271.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ali, HAM, Mayes, RW, Hector, BL, Verma, AK, Ørskov, ER 2005b. The possible use of n-alkanes, long-chain fatty alcohols and long-chain fatty acids as markers in studies of the botanical composition of the diet of free-ranging herbivores. Journal of Agricultural Science 143, 85–95.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ali, HAM, Mayes, RW, Lamb, CS, Hector, BL, Verma, AK, Ørskov, ER 2004. The potential of long-chain fatty alcohols and long-chain fatty acids as diet composition markers: development of methods for quantitative analysis and faecal recoveries of these compounds in sheep fed mixed diets. Journal of Agricultural Science 142, 71–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brosh, A, Henkin, Z, Rothman, SJ, Aharoni, Y, Orlov, A, Arieli, A 2003. Effects of faecal n-alkane recovery in estimates of diet composition. Journal of Agricultural Science 140, 93–100.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bugalho, MN, Dove, H, Kelman, W, Wood, JT, Mayes, RW 2004. Plant wax alkanes and alcohols as herbivore diet composition markers. Journal of Range Management 57, 259–268.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Celaya, R, Oliván, M, Ferreira, LMM, Martínez, A, García, U, Osoro, K 2007. Comparison of grazing behaviour, dietary overlap and performance in non-lactating domestic ruminants grazing on marginal heathland areas. Livestock Science 106, 271–281.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Celaya, R, Benavides, R, García, U, Ferreira, LMM, Ferre, I, Martínez, A, Ortega-Mora, LM, Osoro, K 2008. Grazing behaviour and performance of lactating suckler cows, ewes and goats on partially improved heathlands. Animal 2, 1818–1831.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Charmley, E, Dove, H 2007. Using plant wax markers to estimate diet composition and intakes of mixed forages in sheep by feeding a known amount of alkane-labelled supplement. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58, 1215–1225.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dove, H, Charmley, E 2008. Using the alkanes and long-chain alcohols of plant cuticular wax to estimate diet composition and the intakes of mixed forages in sheep consuming a known amount of alkane-labelled supplement. Animal 2, 1474–1485.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Dove, H, Mayes, RW 2005. Using n-alkanes and other plant wax components to estimate intake, digestibility and diet composition of grazing/browsing sheep and goats. Small Ruminant Research 59, 123–139.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dove, H, Mayes, RW 2006. Protocol for the analysis of n-alkanes and other plant wax compounds and for their use as markers for quantifying the nutrient supply of large mammalian herbivores. Nature Protocols 4, 1680–1697.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dove, H, Mayes, RW, Freer, M 1996. Effects of species, plant part, and plant age on the n-alkane concentrations in the cuticular wax of pasture plants. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 47, 1333–1347.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Elwert, C, Kluth, H, Rodehutscord, M 2004. Effect of variable intake of alfalfa and wheat on faecal alkane recoveries and estimates of roughage intake in sheep. Journal of Agricultural Science 142, 213–223.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Elwert, C, Dove, H, Rodehutscord, M 2008. Faecal alkane recoveries from multi-component diets and effects on estimates of diet composition in sheep. Animal 2, 125–134.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ferreira, LMM, Oliván, M, Garcia, U, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2005. Validation of the alkane technique to estimate diet selection of goats grazing heather–gorse vegetation communities. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 85, 1636–1646.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, LMM, Oliván, M, Celaya, R, Garcia, U, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2007a. The use of n-alkanes to estimate diet composition of ruminants grazing on species diverse plant communities – effect of feeding selectivity on diet composition estimates. Livestock Science 111, 114–123.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, LMM, Oliván, M, Celaya, R, Garcia, U, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2007b. The use of the alkane technique to estimate diet selection of sheep grazing grass-clover/heather–gorse vegetation communities. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 87, 274–285.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, LMM, Carvalho, S, Falco, V, Celaya, R, García, U, Santos, AS, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2009a. Assessment of very long-chain fatty acids as complementary or alternative natural fecal markers to n-alkanes for estimating diet composition of goats feeding on mixed diets. Journal of Animal Science 87, 2732–2745.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Ferreira, LMM, Celaya, R, García, U, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2009b. Differences between domestic herbivores species in alkane faecal recoveries and the accuracy of subsequent estimates of diet composition. Animal Feed Science and Technology 151, 128–142.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, LMM, Celaya, R, Falco, V, Oliván, M, Santos, AS, Guedes, C, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2010a. Evaluation of very long-chain fatty acids and n-alkane epicuticular compounds as markers for estimating diet composition of sheep fed heathland vegetation species. Animal Feed Science and Technology 156, 75–88.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ferreira, LMM, Celaya, R, Santos, AS, Falco, V, Guedes, C, Rodrigues, MAM, Osoro, K 2010b. Comparison of long-chain fatty acids and alkanes as markers to estimate diet composition of equines and cattle consuming heathland vegetation species. Livestock Science 131, 260–271.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fraser, MD, Theobald, VJ, Moorby, JM 2006. Determining diet composition on complex swards using n-alkanes and long-chain fatty alcohols. Ecological Applications 16, 1901–1910.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
GenStat 2008. GenStat, 11th edition. Lawes Agricultural Trust, Rothamsted Experimental Station, VSN International, Oxford, UK.Google Scholar
Illius, AW, Gordon, IA 1993. Diet selection in mammalian herbivores: constraints and tactics. In Diet selection. An interdisciplinary approach to foraging behaviour (ed. RN Hughes), pp. 157–181. Blackwell Scientific Publications, Oxford, UK.Google Scholar
Keli, A, Mayes, RW, de Vega, A 2008. In vitro studies of the metabolism of [14C]-n-alkanes using ruminal fluid of sheep as substrate. Animal 2, 1748–1752.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kelman, W, Bugalho, M, Dove, H 2003. Cuticular wax alkanes and alcohols used as markers to estimate diet composition of sheep (Ovis aries). Biochemical Systematics and Ecology 31, 919–927.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Krebs, CJ 1989. Ecological methodology. Harper Collins, New York, NY.Google Scholar
Lechner-Doll, M, Hume, ID, Hofmann, RR 1995. Comparison of herbivore forage selection and digestion. In Recent developments in the nutrition of herbivores (ed. M Journet, E Grenet, M-H Farce, M Thériez and C Demarquilly), pp. 231–248. INRA, Paris, France.Google Scholar
Lin, LJ, Luo, HL, Zhang, YJ, Shu, B 2007. The effects, in sheep, of dietary plant species and animal live weight on the faecal recovery rates of alkanes and the accuracy of intake and diet composition estimates obtained using alkanes as faecal markers. Journal of Agricultural Science 145, 87–94.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lin, LJ, Luo, HL, Wang, H, Zhang, YJ, Shu, B 2008. Evaluation of long-chain alcohols and fatty acids, in combination with alkanes, as markers in the estimation of the composition of four herbages in mixtures. Grass and Forage Science 64, 19–25.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lin, LJ, Luo, HL, Zhang, YJ, Wang, H, Shu, B, Hong, FZ 2009. The potential use of long-chain alcohols and fatty acids as diet composition markers: factors influencing faecal recovery rates and diet composition estimates in sheep. Animal 3, 1605–1612.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Mandaluniz, N, Aldezabal, A, Oregui, LM 2009. Atlantic mountain grassland–heathlands: structure and feeding value. Spanish Journal of Agricultural Research 7, 129–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mayes, RW, Lamb, CS, Colgrove, PM 1986. The use of dosed and herbage n-alkanes as markers for the determination of herbage intake. Journal of Agricultural Science 107, 161–170.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oliván, M, Osoro, K 1999. Effect of temperature on alkane extraction from faeces and herbage. Journal of Agricultural Science 132, 305–312.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Oliván, M, Ferreira, LMM, García, U, Celaya, R, Osoro, K 2007. Application of n-alkanes as diet composition markers in grazing/browsing goats and sheep: effect of using different faecal recovery corrections and plant species grouping approaches. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 58, 1013–1022.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Osoro, K, Oliván, M, Martínez, A, García, U, Celaya, R 2003. Diet selection and live weight changes in domestic ruminants grazing on heathland vegetation with areas of improved pasture. In Matching herbivore nutrition to ecosystems biodiversity. Proceedings of the 6th International Symposium on the Nutrition of Herbivores (ed. J Herrera-Camacho and CA Sandoval-Castro), pp. 491–494. Universidad Autónoma de Yucatán, Mérida, Mexico.Google Scholar
Osoro, K, García, U, Jáuregui, BM, Ferreira, LMM, Rook, AJ, Celaya, R 2007. Diet selection and live-weight changes of two breeds of goats grazing on heathlands. Animal 1, 449–457.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Rook, AJ, Dumont, B, Isselstein, J, Osoro, K, Wallis, de Vries MF, Parente, G, Mills, J 2004. Matching type of grazing animal to desired biodiversity outcomes – a review. Biological Conservation 119, 137–150.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Salt, CA, Mayes, RW, Colgrove, PM, Lamb, CS 1994. The effects of season and diet composition on the radiocaesium intake by sheep grazing on heather moorland. Journal of Applied Ecology 31, 125–136.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smith, DG, Mayes, RW, Raats, JG 2001. Effects of species, plant part, and season of harvest on n-alkane concentrations in the cuticular wax of common rangeland grasses from southern Africa. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 52, 875–882.CrossRefGoogle Scholar