Foraging behavior of Argentine Criollo and Angus cows grazing semi-desert rangelands in the Arid Gran Chaco region of Argentina

• Autores: Herrera Conegliano, Oscar Ariel; Blanco, Lisandro Javier; Utsumi, Santiago A.; Cibils, Andrés Francisco; Cendoya, Maria Gabriela; Jaimes, Florencia; Moltoni, Andres Fernando; Ricci, Patricia
• Año de publicación: 2022
• Idioma: inglés
• Tipo de recurso: artículo
• Fuente: Journal of Arid Environments 206 : 104827 (November 2022)
• Materia: Ganado Bovino; Razas (animales); Pastoreo; Búsqueda de Alimento; Tierras de Pastos; Cattle; Breeds (animals); Grazing; Foraging; Rangelands; Raza Criolla Argentina; Raza Angus; Región Chaco Semiárido; Foraging Behaviour
• Institución: Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria

We monitored grazing behavior and habitat selection of Argentine Criollo (AC), South American heritage cattle breed, and Angus (AA) cows during summer and winter of 2016 (wetter year) and 2017 (drier year) at a site in La Rioja, Argentina. In each year and season, five AC and five AA cows were fitted with GPS collars configured to log animal position at 10-min intervals for 40 days. Movement, activity, and vegetation use patterns of each breed were derived from the GPS data. In summer, AC cows traveled similar daily distances, explored smaller (wetter year) or slightly larger (drier year) areas of the pasture, tended to move along more sinuous path trajectories, and showed stronger selection of the vegetation unit with higher forage quality and lowest woody cover compared to AA counterparts. AC cows allocated similar (wetter year) or more time to graze (drier year), allocated roughly the same amount of time to travel, and spent similar (wetter year) or less time resting (drier year) than AA cows. In winter, foraging behavior differences between breeds were only observed in the drier year. AC cows traveled farther and spent less time resting than AA counterparts that year. When comparing summer vs. winter movement patterns of each breed, AC cows showed an apparent greater ability to adapt to changing forage conditions (foraging plasticity) compared to AA counterparts which appeared to exhibit more rigid foraging patterns. Criollo cattle could be a tool to increase the resilience of Arid Chaco beef systems in the face of climate change. The rangeland conservation implications of raising Criollo vs. British beef cattle require further investigation.
EEA Catamarca
Fil: Herrera Conegliano, Oscar Ariel. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Catamarca; Argentina
Fil: Herrera Conegliano, Oscar Ariel. Universidad Nacional de Catamarca. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; Argentina
Fil: Blanco, Lisandro Javier. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria La Rioja; Argentina
Fil: Utsumi, Santiago A. New Mexico State University. Department of Animal and Range Sciences; Estados Unidos
Fil: Cibils, Andrés Francisco. New Mexico State University. Department of Animal and Range Sciences; Estados Unidos
Fil: Cendoya, Gabriela. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; Argentina.
Fil: Jaimes, Florencia. Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata. Facultad de Ciencias Agrarias; Argentina.
Fil: Moltoni, Andrés Fernando. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Instituto de Ingeniería Rural; Argentina
Fil: Ricci, Patricia. Instituto Nacional de Tecnología Agropecuaria (INTA). Estación Experimental Agropecuaria Balcarce; Argentina.
Fil: Ricci, Patricia. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas; Argentina. Instituto de Innovación Para la Producción Agropecuaria y el Desarrollo Sostenible; Argentina.