The Innovation Team of Grassland Ecology and Remote Sensing of the Institute of Agricultural Resources and Regional Planning (IARRP) of the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences (CAAS), has made significant progress in studying the relationship between feed intake and behavior of beef cattle under different grazing pressures in the meadow steppes of northern China. The research findings, titled "How does grazing pressure affect feed intake and behavior of livestock in a meadow steppe in northern China and their coupling relationship," were published in the journal Science of the Total Environment (IF = 9.8).

Grasslands are an important resource for human society and a major source of animal feed production. However, the sustainable utilization of grassland resources faces various challenges, including overgrazing and degradation. The feeding behavior and intake of livestock are key factors affecting grassland health and productivity. By deeply studying the feeding behavior and intake of livestock, we can effectively understand the interaction and impact between livestock and grasslands, thereby providing scientific basis and technical support for the development and implementation of sustainable grassland strategies.

Based on the long-term grazing experiment platform of the Hulunbuir Grassland Ecosystem National Field Scientific Observation and Research Station, this study continuously monitored the feed intake, behavior, and movement patterns of livestock under different grazing intensities. The study found that the feed intake fluctuation of beef cattle was higher under light grazing conditions than under moderate and heavy grazing. Regarding the daily dynamics, the movement level of beef cattle showed a relatively smooth change trend under moderate grazing intensity, increased with grazing intensity, and was higher during the period of lush grass compared to the period of withered grass. The feed intake of beef cattle was negatively correlated with stocking rate and movement distance, and positively correlated with canopy height and canopy biomass. The changes in feed intake and movement distance of beef cattle were related to environmental factors, including rainfall, temperature, relative soil humidity, grass biomass, and grassland biodiversity. This study reveals the relationship between the feeding behavior and grass intake of beef cattle under different grazing intensities and emphasizes the impact of feeding behavior on grassland health and productivity, providing a scientific basis for adaptive management and sustainable development of the grassland ecosystem in northern China, particularly the Hulunbuir meadow steppe.

Tianqi Yu, a master's student at the IARRP is the first author, and researcher Ruirui Yan is the corresponding author. This research was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program (2021YFD1300503, 2021YFF0703904), the National Natural Science Foundation of China (31971769, 32130070), and other funding sources.

[Citation and Original Article Link]:

Tianqi Yu, Ruirui Yan*, Chu Zhang, Sisi Chen, Zhitao Zhang, LeiFeng Guo, Tianci Hu, Chengxiang Jiang, Miao Wang, Keyu Bai, Wenneng Zhou*, Lianhai Wu. “How does grazing pressure affect feed intake and behavior of livestock in a meadow steppe in northern China and their coupling relationship.” Science of The Total Environment, Volume 908, 15 January 2024, 168472

Paper Link: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.168472