Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia
Monitoring livestock allows insights to graziers on valuable information such as spatial distribution, foraging patterns, and animal behavior, which can significantly improve the management of livestock for optimal production. This study aimed to understand what potential variables are significant f...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2023-04-01
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| Series: | Animals |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/9/1500 |
| _version_ | 1827743349159755776 |
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| author | Danica Parnell Jack Edwards Lachlan Ingram |
| author_facet | Danica Parnell Jack Edwards Lachlan Ingram |
| author_sort | Danica Parnell |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Monitoring livestock allows insights to graziers on valuable information such as spatial distribution, foraging patterns, and animal behavior, which can significantly improve the management of livestock for optimal production. This study aimed to understand what potential variables are significant for predicting where sheep spent the most time in native (NP) and improved (IP) paddocks. Wethers (castrated male sheep) were tracked using Global Positioning System (GPS) collars on 15 sheep in the IP and 15 in the NP, respectively, on a property located in the Monaro region of Southern New South Wales, Australia. Trials were performed over four six-day periods in April, July, and November of 2014 and March in 2015. Data were analyzed to understand various trends that may have occurred during different seasons, using random forest models (RFMs). Of the factors investigated, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was significant (<i>p</i> < 0.01) and highly important for wethers in the IP, but not the NP, suggesting that quality of pasture was key for wethers in the IP. Elevation, temperature, and near distance to trees were important and significant for predicting residency of wethers in the IP, as well as the NP. The result of this study highlights the ability of predictive models to provide insights on behavior-based modelling of GPS data and further enhance current knowledge about location-based choices of sheep on paddocks. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:24:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-10cb0ef8aada4bfa81998fa145deafdf |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2076-2615 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-11T04:24:49Z |
| publishDate | 2023-04-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Animals |
| spelling | doaj.art-10cb0ef8aada4bfa81998fa145deafdf2023-11-17T22:29:57ZengMDPI AGAnimals2076-26152023-04-01139150010.3390/ani13091500Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of AustraliaDanica Parnell0Jack Edwards1Lachlan Ingram2The School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaThe School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaThe School of Life and Environmental Sciences, Faculty of Science, The University of Sydney, Sydney, NSW 2006, AustraliaMonitoring livestock allows insights to graziers on valuable information such as spatial distribution, foraging patterns, and animal behavior, which can significantly improve the management of livestock for optimal production. This study aimed to understand what potential variables are significant for predicting where sheep spent the most time in native (NP) and improved (IP) paddocks. Wethers (castrated male sheep) were tracked using Global Positioning System (GPS) collars on 15 sheep in the IP and 15 in the NP, respectively, on a property located in the Monaro region of Southern New South Wales, Australia. Trials were performed over four six-day periods in April, July, and November of 2014 and March in 2015. Data were analyzed to understand various trends that may have occurred during different seasons, using random forest models (RFMs). Of the factors investigated, Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) was significant (<i>p</i> < 0.01) and highly important for wethers in the IP, but not the NP, suggesting that quality of pasture was key for wethers in the IP. Elevation, temperature, and near distance to trees were important and significant for predicting residency of wethers in the IP, as well as the NP. The result of this study highlights the ability of predictive models to provide insights on behavior-based modelling of GPS data and further enhance current knowledge about location-based choices of sheep on paddocks.https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/9/1500grazing behaviorsheeppasture managementsmall ruminant management |
| spellingShingle | Danica Parnell Jack Edwards Lachlan Ingram Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia Animals grazing behavior sheep pasture management small ruminant management |
| title | Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia |
| title_full | Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia |
| title_fullStr | Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia |
| title_short | Exploring ‘Wether’ Grazing Patterns Differed in Native or Introduced Pastures in the Monaro Region of Australia |
| title_sort | exploring wether grazing patterns differed in native or introduced pastures in the monaro region of australia |
| topic | grazing behavior sheep pasture management small ruminant management |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/9/1500 |
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