Title
Enteric methane emissions by young Brahman bulls grazing tropical pastures at different rainfall seasons in the Peruvian jungle
Date Issued
01 September 2021
Access level
metadata only access
Resource Type
journal article
Publisher(s)
Springer Science and Business Media B.V.
Abstract
The aim of this research was to measure enteric methane (CH4) emissions by young Brahman bulls grazing tropical pastures at different rainfall seasons in the Peruvian jungle. Fourteen 1.5-year-old, young bulls (280 kg ± 18 kg BW) were grazed on tropical grasses and legumes dominated by German grass [Echinochloa polystachya (Kunth) Hitch.] and minor proportion of Torourco grass [Paspalum conjugatum (P.J. Bergius) Roxb] and Leguminous Calopo (Calopogonium mucunoides Desv.) and Kudzú [Pueraria phaseoloides (Roxb.) Benth]. Enteric CH4 emission was measured by the sulfur hexafluoride (SF6) tracer-gas technique. Organic matter intake (OMI) was determined from organic matter digestibility (OMD) using a fecal protein crude index and fecal output estimated by the dosage of external markers. There was a difference in OMD between seasons (68 and 66% for the dry and rainy seasons, respectively; P < 0.0001). The OMI (6.7 and 7.4 kg/day) and CH4 (178.7 and 298 g/day) were higher (P < 0.05) in the dry season than in the rainy season, respectively. The yield of CH4 was lower (P < 0.0001) during rainy season (7.1%) than at the dry season (10.6%). The CH4 emission (g/day) was correlated with OMD (%) (r = 0.74, P < 0.0001). Enteric CH4 emissions of young bulls grazing mixtures of tropical pastures were significantly lower in animals grazing on the rainy-season, expressed either through unit of absolute emission, intake or as percentage of the GEI. Likewise, OMD of consumed pasture was the most important factor determining CH4 emission.
Volume
53
Issue
4
Language
English
OCDE Knowledge area
Agricultura
Scopus EID
2-s2.0-85111588836
PubMed ID
Source
Tropical Animal Health and Production
ISSN of the container
00494747
Sponsor(s)
The researchers acknowledge the contribution of the “Tulumayo Research and Production Center Annex La Divisoria—Puerto Súngaro at Universidad Nacional Agraria de la Selva" for supplying animals and fields for the execution of the experiments”; The IDB-FONTAGRO, for research financing within the Regional Fund for Agricultural Technology Cooperative Program (FTG/RF-14653-RG) through the project “Improvement of animal production systems with emphasis on dairy cattle in the Andean region within the context of climate change”; the Institute of Agricultural Sciences in the Tropics-Hohenheim University of the German Academic Exchange Service for providing specialized laboratory for the execution of the experiments. The researchers also thank Dra. Isabel Molina Botero, Post-doctoral researcher funded by Project Incorporacion de Investigadores: Cambio climático y ganadería en el Perú: Mitigación y adaptación (CONCYTEC -World Bank) for her careful editing of this paper.
Sources of information: Directorio de Producción Científica Scopus