Genetic Influence on Foraging Behavior (Diet Selection) of Ruminants (Sheep and Goats)

摘要

The increasing human population will continue to place pressure on the world's resources. The end result will be that the grazing animal will likely be relegated to the use of resources not suitable for the production of food crops. In this connection, it will become increasingly more important to select between and within species for animals which will utilize available forage resources to the best advantage. The present report is concerned with a series of investigations comparing the grazing behavior between species, breeds within species, and sire groups within a given genotype. This work confirmed previous studies showing important species differences. However, these studies also confirmed the existence of breed differences for sheep and goats, and the existence of significant sire differences within breeds of young male goats.