Welcome to MELSpace
DSpace is a digital service that collects, preserves, and distributes digital material. Repositories are important tools for preserving an organization's legacy; they facilitate digital preservation and scholarly communication.
Recent Submissions
- Inference of ruminant's activity using GPS-based animal tracking technologiesDate: 2010-10-20Type: PresentationStatus: Open accessOral Presentation in Tropentag 2010 Zuerich, Switzerland 14-16 Sep 2010 Evaluations of range-animal behaviour and its relation to resource selection have been limited by reliance on human observation with high data collection costs, radio telemetry with poor spatial precision or GPS at long logging intervals. With the recent advances in technology, it has become possible to continuously record animal positions via GPS logging at very short intervals. However, continuous logging produces enormous amounts of data which are difficult to analyse without special algorithms. The objective of this study was to develop new techniques for identifying locations where animals were stationary, classify animal movement and to relate this information to traditional behavioural activities. We designed and tested three algorithms to help not only interpret the position data but also classify animal activity. Animal with GPS collars were periodically observed during daylight hours by trained technicians who recorded the time and related activity of animals on data forms. Three algorithms were tested to separate positions into two classes, moving and stationary. Algorithm 1 identified and classified sequential points in close proximity as non-moving; Algorithm 2 searched the data for a user-defined number of positions. Mean and standard deviation of the position were calculated then sequential adjacent positions (in time) were added to the growing group as long as they were a non-significant distance from the position of the group. The computer then searched for the next best seed group. Groups were constructed until the remaining GPS points did not meet requirements for seed groups, then minimum convex polygons were created around the point clusters and an information file created that recorded group number, position, surface area, start time, end time and duration of occupancy at that location. The third algorithm examined the pattern of velocities recorded by the GPS by calculating running means over 1- minute intervals for the entire day. These algorithms were first tested on cattle and goats in eastern Oregon, then on sheep in northwestern Syria. The proposed techniques enables behavioural scientist to analyse animal spatial and temporal behaviour and resource selection at a resolution that could not be accomplished in the past without extreme investment in time and capital.
- Indigenous knowledge in animal management: essential for designing community based sheep breeding programsAuthor(s): Haile, Aynalem; Duguma, Gemeda; Mirkena, Tadele; Tibbo, Markos; Mwai, Ally Okeyo; Iniguez, Luis; Rischkowsky, Barbara; Sölkner, Johann; Wurzinger, Maria (Tropentag, 2010-10-20)Date: 2010-10-20Type: PresentationStatus: Open accessOral Presentation in Tropentag 2010 Zuerich, Switzerland 14-16 Sep 2010 The International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA), the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) and University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences Vienna (BOKU) in partnership with the national agricultural research systems in Ethiopia are implementing community-based breeding strategies for four local breeds (Afar, Bonga, Horro and Menz) in four sites. Understanding of local knowledge and practices of communities in animal management is of paramount importance for success of community-based breeding programs. Workshops were held with the project communities to learn their animal management practices (selection of rams and ewes, ram sharing, grazing management etc.). Breeding management skills were studied by conducting heritability and genetic correlation exercises. For this purpose, the most important animal traits for the different production systems were identified from a systems study. Overall, 9 to 10 phenotypic, production, and reproduction traits were used in the form of drawings and/or verbal explanations. All possible pair-wise combinations of traits were presented to the communities to express their impressions via voting. For evaluating heritability, the communities were asked which trait of a pair is relatively more heritable than the other. For the correlation exercise, they were asked to estimate the magnitude (high, low, and none) of relationship between the traits in each pair. The results indicate that farmers/pastoralists have excellent skills in sheep management. Mating is generally uncontrolled; however, the farmers have a tradition of ram exchange. All farmers/pastoralists exercise ewe and ram selection. The selection is based on phenotypic appearance and recalled pedigree. Farmers/pastoralists' knowledge on heritability of traits and genetic correlations between traits more or less concurs with scientific evidence in literature. For example, qualitative traits (like colour) were judged highly heritable followed by production traits. Knowledge of correlations is used for indirect selection when the target traits are either impossible to assess on the live animal or are sex-limited. Indigenous knowledge and existing practices in the communities, developed through years of practical experience, provide an excellent base for the design of sheep breeding programs
- Effect of supplementation with agro-industrial by-products on milk fatty acids in Awassi sheepAuthor(s): Hilali, Muhi El-Dine; Iniguez, Luis; Mayer, Helmut; Knaus, Wilhelm; Zaklouta, Monika; Wurzinger, Maria; Schreiner, Matthias (Tropentag, 2010-10-20)Date: 2010-10-20Type: PresentationStatus: Open accessOral Presentation in Tropentag 2010 Zuerich, Switzerland 14-16 Sep 2010 Resource-poor dairy sheep farmers in Middle Eastern countries face high and increasing feeding costs in particular during the milk production period. The conventional supplementary feeds used by farmers (control) are based on barley grain, wheat bran and barley straw and are often unbalanced in energy and protein contents. It has already been demonstrated that locally available feeds like cottonseed cake (CSC), molasses, sugar beet pulp (SBP) and urea-treated wheat straw (UTS) can be utilised to design balanced cost optimised diets (COD). However, the changed feeding regimes may affect product quality. This paper examines the effects of CODs on milk fatty acid profiles that are important for product quality. Six CODs were compared with a control at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) in Syria. Fifty-six Awassi ewes were randomly assigned to the seven groups. Animals in all COD treatments were kept on grazing as a basal diet, supplemented with the same level of crude protein (229 g/d) and energy (18MJ/d), only one group of the CODs was based on molasses and on vetch grazing. The control group received less protein (190 g/d) and similar energy levels as the COD groups. Milk samples were collected on weekly basis in April. In three out of six COD, saturated fatty acids (SFA) decreased by 0.5-5%, while they increased by 11% in the vetch COD (P<0.01). The vetch-COD resulted in remarkable increases in C6:0, C8:0, C10:0, C12:0 and C14:0 and decreases in C18:0 and C20:0 (P<0.01). An increase in C6:0, C8:0 and C10:0 was also observed in the Molasses and SBP-CODs. Monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFA) increased by 1-14% with 3 out of 6 COD, whereas MUFA decreased 32% in the vetch-COD (P<0.01). Polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) increased in all CODs by 1-12 % compared to the control group (P<0.01). However, conjugated linoleic acid CLA c9t11 was not affected by the treatments. The observed differences in the fatty acid profiles will directly impact on the organoleptic properties of yogurt and the quality of ghee and thereby influence their market value in the Middle Eastern countries.
- Effect of supplementation with agro-industrial by-products on mineral content in Awassi sheep milkAuthor(s): Hilali, Muhi El-Dine; Iniguez, Luis; Rischkowsky, Barbara; Mayer, Helmut; Schreiner, Matthias (Tropentag, 2011-11-20)Date: 2011-11-20Type: PresentationStatus: Open accessOral Presentation in Tropentag 2011 "International Research on Food Security, Natural Resource Management and Rural Development – Development on the margin" Bonn, Germany 5-7 Oct 2011 Resource-poor dairy sheep farmers in Middle Eastern countries face high feeding costs in par ticular during the milk production period. The conventional supplementary feeds used by farmers (control) are based on barley, wheat bran and barley straw and are often unbalanced in energy and protein contents. It has already been demonstrated that locally available feeds like cotton seed cake (CSC), molasses, sugar beet pulp (SBP) and urea-treated wheat straw (UTS) can be utilised to design balanced cost-optimised diets (COD). However, the changed feeding regimes may affect mineral content. This paper examines the effects of CODs on the Awassi sheep milk content of calcium, phosphorus, sodium, potassium and magnesium that play an important role in human bone health. Five CODs were compared with a control diet at the International Center for Agricultural Re search in the Dry Areas, Aleppo, Syria. Forty-eight Awassi ewes were randomly assigned to the six groups. Animals in all COD treatments were kept on grazing as a basal diet, supplemented with the same level of crude protein (229 g d-1 and energy (18 MJ d-1). The control group received less protein (190 g d-1) and similar energy levels as the COD groups. Milk samples were collected once every two weeks from April to July. Diet affected significantly the milk content of minerals. In two out of five CODs, the milk content of calcium was increased by 5-6% compared to the control diet. The CSC and UTS -CODs resulted in a decrease in the content of phosphorus by 3-5%. Also, the content of magnesium decreased by 3-7% in three CODs compared to the control diet. The potassium increased by 7% in one COD, while the content of sodium decreased by 8-12% in three CODs. The mineral content changed by the advance of milking season. The content of calcium and potassium was decreased with the advance of lactation while the content of phosphorus, magnesium and sodium increased with the advance of lactation. Diets can affect the content of minerals in milk which can make an important contribution to the human daily intake, especially calcium that has a benefit on osteoporosis and on traits of the metabolic syndrome
- Options for enhancing resilience of rural populations to reduced water availability in UzbekistanDate: 2011-11-20Type: PresentationStatus: Open accessOral Presentation in Tropentag 2011 "International Research on Food Security, Natural Resource Management and Rural Development – Development on the margin" Bonn, Germany 5-7 Oct 2011 Central Asia is considered to be one of the most vulnerable to climate change and its anticipated effects, such as more frequent and prolonged drought events and reduced water availability. Reduced water availability will lead to crop failures and severely undermine the livelihood of rural population. Modification of existing agricultural policies, which currently determine the water-intensive agricultural production, could make the rural population more resilient to reduced water availability. In this paper, we address the issue of fostering food security via agricultural policy solutions on the example of modifications in the state regulations over cotton production in the Khorezm province of Uzbekistan. To identify the grain prospects of modifying the cotton policy and the impact of the policy changes on water use in agriculture, we applied an integrated bio-economic model developed at the scale of a water users association in Khorezm. Simulation results show that abolishment of the cotton policy seems a more viable option to improve food production rather available options to modify its settings. The study revealed that the same amount of cotton could be produced if the farm-gate cotton price was at world market level. This would allow an increase in total grain production without putting stress on water. The more flexible settings of cotton policy are likely to reduce land values, meaning a potential loss of farmers’ interest in investing in land improvement and conservation technologies. Consequently, there is a risk of exacerbating the vulnerability of irrigated agriculture in Uzbekistan due to land degradation when cotton-growing policies are changed, not only abolished. However, if farmers are released from cotton production targets, the gross farm income may increase at the expense of higher demands for irrigation water. Supplemental agricultural policies and institutions are required for promoting more efficient water use and farm investments in land improvement.