Phenotypic relationships among methane production traits assessed under ad libitum feeding of beef cattle.

Angus cattle from 2 beef cattle projects in which daily methane production (MPR) was measured were used in this study to examine the nature of the relationships among BW, DMI, and methane traits of beef cattle fed ad libitum on a roughage diet or a grain-based feedlot diet. In both projects methane was measured using the GreenFeed Emission Monitoring system, which provides multiple short-term breath measures of methane production. The data used for this study were from 119 Angus heifers over 15 d on a roughage diet and 326 Angus steers over 70 d on a feedlot diet. Mean (±SD) age, BW, and DMI were 372 ± 28 d, 355 ± 37 kg, and 8.1 ± 1.3 kg/d for the heifers and 554 ± 86 d, 577 ± 69 kg, and 13.3 ± 2.0 kg/d for the steers, respectively. The corresponding mean MPR was 212 g/d for heifers and 203 g/d for steers. Additional traits studied included methane yield (MY; MPR/DMI), methane intensity (MPR/BW), and 3 forms of residual methane production (RMP), which is a measure of actual minus predicted MPR. For RMP, RMP, and RMP predicted MPR were obtained by regression of MPR on BW, on DMI, and on both DMI and BW, respectively. The 2 data sets were analyzed separately using the same statistical procedures. For both feed types the relationships between MPR and DMI and between MPR and BW were both positive and linear. The correlation between MPR and DMI was similar to that between MPR and BW, although the correlations were stronger for the roughage diet ( = 0.75 for MPR vs. DMI; = 0.74 for MPR vs. BW) than the grain-based diet ( = 0.62 for MPR vs. DMI; = 0.66 for MPR vs. BW). The correlation between MY and DMI was negative and moderate for the roughage ( = -0.68) and grain-based ( = -0.59) diets, a finding that is different from the nonsignificant correlations reported in studies of cattle on a restricted roughage diet. The 3 RMP traits were strongly correlated ( values from 0.76 to 0.99) with each other for both the roughage and the grain-based diets, which indicates that using RMP to lower MPR could provide a result similar to using RMP in cattle. As feed intake (DMI) is more difficult to measure than BW, this result implies that under ad libitum feeding situations in which DMI cannot be measured, RMP can be used to identify higher- or lower-RMP animals with similar levels of effectiveness as RMP.

Optimizing test procedures for estimating daily methane and carbon dioxide emissions in cattle using short-term breath measures.

Respiration chambers are considered the reference method for quantifying the daily CH production rate (MPR) and CO production rate (CPR) of cattle; however, they are expensive, labor intensive, cannot be used in the production environment, and can be used to assess only a limited number of animals. Alternative methods are now available, including those that provide multiple short-term measures of CH and CO, such as the GreenFeed Emission Monitoring (GEM) system. This study was conducted to provide information for optimizing test procedures for estimating MPR and CPR of cattle from multiple short-term CH and CO records. Data on 495 Angus steers on a 70-d ad libitum feedlot diet with 46,657 CH and CO records and on 121 Angus heifers on a 15-d ad libitum roughage diet with 7,927 CH and CO records were used. Mean (SD) age and BW were 554 d (SD 92) and 506 kg (SD 73), respectively, for the steers and 372 d (SD 28) and 348 kg (SD 37), respectively, for the heifers. The 2 data sets were analyzed separately but using the same procedures to examine the reduction in variance as more records are added and to evaluate the level of precision with 2 vs. 3 min as the minimum GEM visit duration for a valid record. The moving averages procedure as well as the repeated measures procedure were used to calculate variances for both CH and CO, starting with 5 records and progressively increasing to a maximum of 80 records. For both CH and CO and in both data sets, there was a sharp reduction in the variances obtained by both procedures as more records were added. However, there was no substantial reduction in the variance after 30 records had been added. Inclusion of records with a minimum of 2-min GEM visit duration resulted in reduction in precision relative to a minimum of 3 min, as indicated by significantly ( < 0.05) more heterogeneous variances for all cases except CH4 in steers. In addition, more records were required to achieve the same level of precision relative to data with minimum GEM visit durations of 3 min. For example, in the steers, 72% reduction in initial variance was achieved with 30 records for both CH and CO when minimum GEM visit duration was 3 min, relative to 45 records when data with a minimum visit duration of 2 min were included. It is concluded from this study that when using records of multiple short-term breath measures of CH or CO for the computation of an animal's MPR or CPR, a minimum of 30 records, each record obtained from a minimum GEM visit duration of 3 min, are required.

Genomewide association study of methane emissions in Angus beef cattle with validation in dairy cattle.

Methane (CH) is a product of enteric fermentation in ruminants, and it represents around 17% of global CH emissions. There has been substantial effort from the livestock scientific community toward tools that can help reduce this percentage. One approach is to select for lower emitting animals. To achieve this, accurate genetic parameters and identification of the genomic basis of CH traits are required. Therefore, the objectives of this study were 1) to perform a genomewide association study to identify SNP associated with several CH traits in Angus beef cattle (1,020 animals) and validate them in a lactating Holstein population (population 1 [POP1]; 205 animals); 2) to validate significant SNP for DMI and weight at test (WT) from a second Holstein population, from a previous study (population 2 [POP2]; 903 animals), in an Angus population; and 3) to evaluate 2 different residual CH traits and determine if the genes associated with CH also control residual CH traits. Phenotypes calculated for the genotyped Angus population included CH production (MeP), CH yield (MeY), CH intensity (MI), DMI, and WT. The Holstein population (POP1) was multiparous, with phenotypes on CH traits (MeP, MeY, and MI) plus genotypes. Additionally, 2 CH traits, residual genetic CH (RGM) and residual phenotypic CH (RPM), were calculated by adjusting MeP for DMI and WT. Estimated heritabilities in the Angus population were 0.30, 0.19, and 0.15 for MeP, RGM, and RPM, respectively, and genetic correlations of MeP with DMI and WT were 0.83 and 0.80, respectively. Estimated heritabilities in Holstein POP1 were 0.23, 0.30, and 0.42 for MeP, MeY, and MI, respectively. Strong associations with MeP were found on chromosomes 4, 12, 14, 20, and 30 at < 0.001, and those chromosomes also had significant SNP for DMI in Holstein POP1. In the Angus population, the number of significant SNP for MeP at < 0.005 was 3,304, and approximately 630 of those SNP also were important for DMI and WT. When a set (approximately 3,300) of significant SNP for DMI and WT in the Angus population was used to estimate genetic parameters for MeP and MeY in Holstein POP1, the genetic variance and, consequently, the heritability slightly increased, meaning that most of the genetic variation is largely captured by these SNP. Residual traits could be a good option to include in the breeding goal, as this would facilitate selection for lower emitting animals without compromising DMI and WT.

Associations among methane emission traits measured in the feedlot and in respiration chambers in Angus cattle bred to vary in feed efficiency.

The objective of the study was to evaluate associations among animal performance and methane emission traits under feedlot conditions and in respiration chambers in Angus cattle bred to vary in residual feed intake (RFI), which is a measure of feed efficiency. Fifty-nine cattle were tested for feedlot RFI, of which 41 had methane production recorded on an ad libitum grain-based ration in the feedlot, 59 on a restricted grain-based ration in respiration chambers, and 57 on a restricted roughage ration in respiration chambers. The cattle became older and heavier as they went through the different phases of the experiment, but their feed intake (expressed as DMI) and daily emission of enteric methane (methane production rate; MPR) did not increase proportionally, as feed offered was restricted in the respiration chamber tests. Methane emissions by individual animals relative to their DMI were calculated as methane yield (MY; MPR/DMI) and as 2 measures of residual methane production (RMP and RMP), which were calculated as the difference between measured MPR and that predicted from feed intake by 2 different equations. Within each test regime, MPR was positively correlated ( = 0.28 to 0.61) with DMI. Phenotypic correlations for MY, RMP, and RMP between the feedlot test and the restricted grain test ( = 0.40 to 0.43) and between the restricted grain test and the restricted roughage test were moderate ( = 0.36 to 0.41) and moderate to strong between the feedlot test and the restricted roughage test ( = 0.54 to 0.58). These results indicate that the rankings of animals for methane production relative to feed consumed are relatively stable over the 3 test phases. Feedlot feed conversion ratio and RFI were not correlated with MPR in the feedlot test and grain-based chamber test but were negatively correlated with MPR in the chamber roughage test ( = -0.31 and -0.37). Both were negatively correlated with MY and RMP in the feedlot test ( = -0.42 to -0.54) and subsequent chamber roughage test ( = -0.27 to -0.49). Midparent estimated breeding values for RFI tended to be negatively correlated with MY and RMP in the feedlot test ( = -0.27 and -0.27) and were negatively correlated with MY, RMP, and RMP in the chamber roughage test ( = -0.33 to -0.36). These results showed that in young growing cattle, lower RFI was associated with higher MY, RMP, and RMP but had no significant association with MPR.

Genetic and phenotypic variance and covariance components for methane emission and postweaning traits in Angus cattle.

Ruminants contribute 80% of the global livestock greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions mainly through the production of methane, a byproduct of enteric microbial fermentation primarily in the rumen. Hence, reducing enteric methane production is essential in any GHG emissions reduction strategy in livestock. Data on 1,046 young bulls and heifers from 2 performance-recording research herds of Angus cattle were analyzed to provide genetic and phenotypic variance and covariance estimates for methane emissions and production traits and to examine the interrelationships among these traits. The cattle were fed a roughage diet at 1.2 times their estimated maintenance energy requirements and measured for methane production rate (MPR) in open circuit respiration chambers for 48 h. Traits studied included DMI during the methane measurement period, MPR, and methane yield (MY; MPR/DMI), with means of 6.1 kg/d (SD 1.3), 132 g/d (SD 25), and 22.0 g/kg (SD 2.3) DMI, respectively. Four forms of residual methane production (RMP), which is a measure of actual minus predicted MPR, were evaluated. For the first 3 forms, predicted MPR was calculated using published equations. For the fourth (RMP), predicted MPR was obtained by regression of MPR on DMI. Growth and body composition traits evaluated were birth weight (BWT), weaning weight (WWT), yearling weight (YWT), final weight (FWT), and ultrasound measures of eye muscle area, rump fat depth, rib fat depth, and intramuscular fat. Heritability estimates were moderate for MPR (0.27 [SE 0.07]), MY (0.22 [SE 0.06]), and the RMP traits (0.19 [SE 0.06] for each), indicating that genetic improvement to reduce methane emissions is possible. The RMP traits and MY were strongly genetically correlated with each other (0.99 ± 0.01). The genetic correlation of MPR with MY as well as with the RMP traits was moderate (0.32 to 0.63). The genetic correlation between MPR and the growth traits (except BWT) was strong (0.79 to 0.86). These results indicate that selection for lower MPR may have undesired effect on animal productivity. On the other hand, MY and the RMPR were either not genetically correlated or weakly correlated with BWT, YWT, and FWT (-0.06 to 0.23) and body composition traits (-0.18 to 0.18). Therefore, selection for lower MY or RMPR would lead to lower MPR without impacting animal productivity. Where the use of a ratio trait (e.g., MY) is not desirable, selection on any of the forms of RMP would be an alternative.

Genomic heritabilities and genomic estimated breeding values for methane traits in Angus cattle.

Enteric methane emissions from beef cattle are a significant component of total greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture. The variation between beef cattle in methane emissions is partly genetic, whether measured as methane production, methane yield (methane production/DMI), or residual methane production (observed methane production - expected methane production), with heritabilities ranging from 0.19 to 0.29. This suggests methane emissions could be reduced by selection. Given the high cost of measuring methane production from individual beef cattle, genomic selection is the most feasible approach to achieve this reduction in emissions. We derived genomic EBV (GEBV) for methane traits from a reference set of 747 Angus animals phenotyped for methane traits and genotyped for 630,000 SNP. The accuracy of GEBV was tested in a validation set of 273 Angus animals phenotyped for the same traits. Accuracies of GEBV ranged from 0.29 ± 0.06 for methane yield and 0.35 ± 0.06 for residual methane production. Selection on GEBV using the genomic prediction equations derived here could reduce emissions for Angus cattle by roughly 5% over 10 yr.

Measures of methane production and their phenotypic relationships with dry matter intake, growth, and body composition traits in beef cattle.

Ruminants contribute up to 80% of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from livestock, and enteric methane production by ruminants is the main source of these GHG emissions. Hence, reducing enteric methane production is essential in any GHG emissions reduction strategy in livestock. Data from 2 performance-recording research herds of Angus cattle were used to evaluate a number of methane measures that target methane production (MPR) independent of feed intake and to examine their phenotypic relationships with growth and body composition. The data comprised 777 young bulls and heifers that were fed a roughage diet (ME of 9 MJ/kg DM) at 1.2 times their maintenance energy requirements and measured for MP in open circuit respiration chambers for 48 h. Methane traits evaluated included DMI during the methane measurement period, MPR, and methane yield (MY; MPR/DMI), with means (± SD) of 6.2 ± 1.4 kg/d, 187 ± 38 L/d, and 30.4 ± 3.5 L/kg, respectively. Four forms of residual MPR (RMP), which is a measure of actual minus predicted MPR, were evaluated. For the first 3 forms, predicted MPR was calculated using published equations. For the fourth (RMPR), predicted MPR was obtained by regression of MPR on DMI. Growth traits evaluated were BW at birth, weaning (200 d of age), yearling age (400 d of age), and 600 d of age, with means (± SD) of 34 ± 4.6, 238 ± 37, 357 ± 45, and 471 ± 53 kg, respectively. Body composition traits included ultrasound measures (600 d of age) of rib fat, rump fat, and eye muscle area, with means (± SD) of 3.8 ± 2.6 mm, 5.4 ± 3.8 mm, and 61 ± 7.7 cm(2), respectively. Methane production was positively correlated (r ± SE) with DMI (0.65 ± 0.02), MY (0.72 ± 0.02), the RMP traits (r from 0.65 to 0.79), the growth traits (r from 0.19 to 0.57), and the body composition traits (r from 0.13 to 0.29). Methane yield was, however, not correlated (r ± SE) with DMI (-0.02 ± 0.04) as well as the growth (r from -0.03 to 0.11) and body composition (r from 0.01 to 0.06) traits. All the RMP traits were strongly correlated to MY (r from 0.82 to 0.95). These results indicate that reducing MPR per se can have a negative impact on growth and body composition of cattle. Reducing MY, however, will likely have the effect of reducing MPR without impacting productivity. Where a ratio trait is undesirable, as in animal breeding, any of the RMP traits can be used instead of MY. However, where independence from DMI is desired, RMPR should be a trait worth considering.

Inferring the recent ancestry of myostatin alleles affecting muscle mass in cattle.

Double muscling is an inherited condition in cattle characterised by large increases in muscle mass. Mutations in the myostatin (MSTN) gene, responsible for double muscling, were targeted in this study to estimate the time since the most recent common ancestor (TMRCA) for Q204X (p.Gln204*), E226X (p.Glu226*), 821del11 (c.821del11), E291X (p.Glu291*), C313Y (p.Cys313Tyr) and the more phenotypically moderate F94L (p.Phe94Leu) mutation. Genetic variability was examined in eight regions upstream and downstream of the MSTN locus. The molecular distance of the homozygous region associated with each MSTN allele was used to estimate the TMRCA. Long homozygous segments were associated with the MSTN alleles (mostly > 2 Mb), compared to short segments (130 kb) for cattle wild type at the double muscling and F94L sites. Estimates of time indicated that each MSTN allele had a recent common ancestor (<400 years ago). The results from this study, and the increasing frequency of these MSTN alleles in some cattle breeds, demonstrate recent positive selection.

Chemical composition of growing pigs and its relationship with body tissue composition assessed by X-ray-computed tomography.

Ninety hybrid (mainly Large White × Landrace) pigs from 2 experimental replicates were used to study the potential use of computed tomography (CT) as a nondestructive technology for estimating the chemical body composition of growing pigs. Body tissue components (lean, fat, and bone) of 6 live pigs from each sex (boars, gilts, and barrows) were assessed by CT imaging before slaughter at approximately 30, 60, 90, 120, and 150 kg of BW. After slaughter, the empty body components were ground and frozen until analyzed for protein, lipid, ash, and moisture content. Several growth functions were evaluated and the allometric function (Y = aBW(b)), which was evaluated as log(10)chemical component weight = b(0) + b(1)log(10)BW, provided the best fit to the data. For each sex, the allometric coefficient (b(1)) for protein (0.92 to 0.99) was close to but less than 1; for ash (1.03 to 1.12), it was close to but greater than 1; for moisture (0.82 to 0.86), it was less than 1, and for lipid (1.61 to 1.71), it was greater than 1. Deposition rates (change in component weight per unit change in BW) for each chemical component were predicted using derivatives of the function. The mean deposition rates for protein and lipid were 0.141 and 0.286 kg/kg of BW gain, respectively. The deposition rate for protein was generally stable across different BW, whereas that for lipid increased as BW increased. In addition, linear, quadratic, exponential, and logistic functions were fitted to the data to study the relationship between the CT data and chemical components. The linear function was assessed to be the best equation, based on the Bayesian information criterion. The prediction equation for protein (kg) = -1.64 + 0.28 × CT lean (kg), and for lipid (kg) = -0.69 + 1.09 × CT fat (kg), had R(2) values of 0.924 and 0.987, respectively. Sex had no effect (P > 0.05) on the prediction of protein and lipid. The effect of BW was not significant (P > 0.05) for the prediction of lipid, but it was significant (P > 0 0.05) for the prediction of protein. However, the addition of BW to the base prediction equation for protein resulted in an increase of only 0.013 in the R(2) value. It was concluded from this study that CT scanning has great potential as a nondestructive technology for estimating the physical and chemical body composition of pigs. Additional research is required to validate the utility and accuracy of the prediction equations.

Genome-wide association studies for feedlot and growth traits in cattle.

A genome wide-association study for production traits in cattle was carried out using genotype data from the 10K Affymetrix (Santa Clara, CA) and the 50K Illumina (San Diego, CA) SNP chips. The results for residual feed intake (RFI), BW, and hip height in 3 beef breed types (Bos indicus, Bos taurus, and B. indicus × B. taurus), and for stature in dairy cattle, are presented. The aims were to discover SNP associated with all traits studied, but especially RFI, and further to test the consistency of SNP effects across different cattle populations and breed types. The data were analyzed within data sets and within breed types by using a mixed model and fitting 1 SNP at a time. In each case, the number of significant SNP was more than expected by chance alone. A total of 75 SNP from the reference population with 50K chip data were significant (P < 0.001) for RFI, with a false discovery rate of 68%. These 75 SNP were mapped on 24 different BTA. Of the 75 SNP, the 9 most significant SNP were detected on BTA 3, 5, 7, and 8, with P ≤ 6.0 × 10(-5). In a population of Angus cattle divergently selected for high and low RFI and 10K chip data, 111 SNP were significantly (P < 0.001) associated with RFI, with a false discovery rate of 7%. Approximately 103 of these SNP were therefore likely to represent true positives. Because of the small number of SNP common to both the 10K and 50K SNP chips, only 27 SNP were significantly (P < 0.05) associated with RFI in the 2 populations. However, other chromosome regions were found that contained SNP significantly associated with RFI in both data sets, although no SNP within the region showed a consistent effect on RFI. The SNP effects were consistent between data sets only when estimated within the same breed type.

Differential growth and development of pigs as assessed by X-ray computed tomography.

Data from 54 hybrid (mainly Large White x Landrace) pigs (18 boars, 18 gilts, and 18 barrows) were used to quantify and mathematically describe the differential growth and development of body components of live pigs. The pigs were 32.4 +/- 3.2 kg of BW and 70 +/- 1 d of age (mean +/- SD) at the beginning of the study, were individually penned and fed ad libitum, and were weighed weekly. Computed tomography (CT) imaging was used to determine the weights of lean, fat, bone, and skin tissue in the live pig at 30, 60, 90, 120, and 150 kg of BW. For each target BW, the sum of all the weights of the body components, as assessed by CT, was referred to as CT BW. Linear and nonlinear models were developed to evaluate the patterns of growth and development of each body component relative to CT BW. The correlation between the actual BW and CT BW was close to unity (r = 0.99), indicating that CT scanning could accurately predict the BW of pigs. Across sex and castrate status, percentage of fat (fat weight/CT BW) in the pig was least (11.2%) at the 30-kg target BW and continued to increase to 22.6% by the 150-kg target BW. Percentage of lean, however, was greatest (67.2%) at the 30-kg target BW and continued to decrease to 53.4% by the 150-kg target BW. The sex or castrate status x target BW interaction was significant (P < 0.05) for all the body components, indicating that the developmental patterns were different among sex or castrate status. Barrows were fatter relative to gilts, which in turn were fatter than boars. For lean, the observed pattern for sex or castrate status differences was opposite that for fat. To predict responses to management strategies on growth and development in pigs, accurate mathematical models are required, and the results of this study indicate that the nonlinear (e.g., augmented allometric and generalized nonlinear) functions provided better descriptions of the growth and development of most body components of the live pig than did the simpler (e.g., linear and allometric) models.

Physiological basis for residual feed intake.

Residual feed intake (RFI) is a measure of feed efficiency that is independent of level of production, such as size and growth rate in beef cattle, and thus is a useful new trait for studying the physiological mechanisms underlying variation in feed efficiency. Five major physiological processes are likely to contribute to variation in RFI, these being processes associated with intake of feed, digestion of feed, metabolism (anabolism and catabolism associated with and including variation in body composition), physical activity, and thermoregulation. Studies on Angus steers following divergent selection for RFI estimated that heat production from metabolic processes, body composition, and physical activity explained 73% of the variation in RFI. The proportions of variation in RFI that these processes explain are protein turnover, tissue metabolism and stress (37%); digestibility (10%); heat increment and fermentation (9%); physical activity (9%); body composition (5%); and feeding patterns (2%). Other studies in cattle and studies in poultry similarly found these processes to be important in explaining RFI. The physiological mechanisms identified so far are based on very few studies, some of which have small sample sizes. The genomic basis to variation in these physiological processes remains to be determined. Early studies have shown many hundred genes to be associated with differences in RFI, perhaps in hindsight not surprising given the diversity of physiological processes involved. Further research is required to better understand the mechanisms responsible for the variation in RFI in target populations and to marry the physiological information with molecular genetics information that will become the basis for commercial tests for genetically superior animals.

Optimum duration of performance tests for evaluating growing pigs for growth and feed efficiency traits.

The optimum duration of test for the measurement of ADG, ADFI, feed:gain ratio [which is the reciprocal of the efficiency of gain (G:F) and therefore increases as the efficiency of gain decrease and vice versa], and residual feed intake was examined in growing pigs. Data from 144 hybrid (mainly Large White x Landrace) pigs involved in a longitudinal (n = 54) and serial slaughter (n = 90) experiment were used. The pigs were housed in individual pens from 70 +/- 1 d of age (mean +/- SD) and fed ad libitum a pelleted commercial diet. Feed intake and BW data on pigs that had a minimum of 10-wk records were partitioned into a 14-d adjustment and a 56-d test period. Phenotypic correlations among weekly measurements were used to examine the repeatability of each trait. Changes in phenotypic residual variance and correlation using shortened (7-, 14-, 21-, 28-, 35-, 42-, and 49-d) tests compared with the full-length 56-d test were used as criteria to assess the optimum test duration. The results of the phenotypic correlations among weekly measurements indicated that ADFI, which was characterized by moderate to high correlations (0.41 to 0.81), was more repeatable than ADG, which was characterized by low correlations (0.00 to 0.43). Mean gut fill (n = 107) was 4.2% of BW but was characterized by large variation among the pigs (SD = 1.8; CV = 42.2%). This variation in gut fill was a major contributor to the low repeatability of the measurement of ADG. These repeatability results indicated that ADG, rather than ADFI, will determine the optimum duration of test for the feed efficiency traits. The results of the shortened relative to the full-length test indicate that for growing pigs under good nutrition and ad libitum feeding, a 28-d test was adequate for the measurement of feed intake, whereas a 35-d test was required to measure ADG, feed:gain ratio, and residual feed intake without compromising the accuracy of measurement.

Variance components due to direct genetic, maternal genetic and permanent environmental effect for growth and feed-efficiency traits in young male Japanese Black cattle.

Variance components and genetic parameters were estimated using data recorded on 740 young male Japanese Black cattle during the period from 1971 to 2003. Traits studied were feed intake (FI), feed-conversion ratio (FCR), residual feed intake (RFI), average daily gain (ADG), metabolic body weight (MWT) at the mid-point of the test period and body weight (BWT) at the finish of the test (345 days). Data were analysed using three alternative animal models (direct, direct + maternal environmental, and direct + maternal genetic effects). Comparison of the log likelihood values has shown that the direct genetic effect was significant (p < 0.05) for all traits and that the maternal environmental effects were significant (p < 0.05) for MWT and BWT. The heritability estimates were 0.20 +/- 0.12 for FI, 0.14 +/- 0.10 for FCR, 0.33 +/- 0.14 for RFI, 0.19 +/- 0.12 for ADG, 0.30 +/- 0.14 for MWT and 0.30 +/- 0.13 for BWT. The maternal effects (maternal genetic and maternal environmental) were not important in feed-efficiency traits. The genetic correlation between RFI and ADG was stronger than the corresponding correlation between FCR and ADG. These results provide evidence that RFI should be included for genetic improvement in feed efficiency in Japanese Black breeding programmes.

Genetic and phenotypic variance and covariance components for feed intake, feed efficiency, and other postweaning traits in Angus cattle.

Records on 1,180 young Angus bulls and heifers involved in performance tests were used to estimate genetic and phenotypic parameters for feed intake, feed efficiency, and other postweaning traits. The mean age was 268 d at the start of the performance test, which comprised 21-d adjustment and 70-d test periods. Traits studied included 200-d weight, 400-d weight, scrotal circumference, ultrasonic measurements of rib and rump fat depths and longissimus muscle area, ADG, metabolic weight, daily feed intake, feed conversion ratio, and residual feed intake. For all traits except the last five, additional data from the Angus Society ofAustralia pedigree and performance database were included, which increased the number of animals to 27,229. Genetic (co)variances were estimated by REML using animal models. Direct heritability estimates for 200-d weight, 400-d weight, rib fat depth, ADG, feed conversion,and residual feed intake were 0.17 +/- 0.03, 0.27 +/- 0.03, 0.35 +/- 0.04, 0.28 +/- 0.04, 0.29 +/- 0.04, and 0.39 +/- 0.03, respectively. Feed conversion ratio was genetically (r(g) = 0.66 ) and phenotypically (r(p) = 0.53) correlated with residual feed intake. Feed conversion ratio was correlated (r(g) = -0.62, r(p) = -0.74) with ADG, whereas residual feed intake was not (rg = -0.04, r(p) = -0.06). Genetically, both residual feed intake and feed conversion ratio were negatively correlated with direct effects of 200-d weight (r(g) = -0.45 and -0.21) and 400-d weight (r(g) = -0.26 and -0.09). The correlations between the remaining traits and the feed efficiency traits were near zero, except between feed intake and feed conversion ratio (r(g) = 0.31, r(p) = 0.23), feed intake and residual feed intake (r(g) = 0.69, r(p) = 0.72), and rib fat depth and residual feed intake (r(g) = 0.17, r(p) = 0.14). These results indicate that genetic improvement in feed efficiency can be achieved through selection and, in general, correlated responses in growth and the other postweaning traits will be minimal.

Optimum postweaning test for measurement of growth rate, feed intake, and feed efficiency in British breed cattle.

The optimum duration of test for measurement of growth rate, feed intake, feed conversion, and residual feed intake was examined using postweaning feed intake and weight data from 760 Angus, Hereford, Polled Hereford, and Shorthorn heifer and Angus bull progeny from 78 sires. Variance components, heritability, phenotypic and genetic correlations, and the efficiency of selection using shortened tests compared with a 199-d test were used as criteria to assess the optimum test length. The results indicated that a 35-d test was sufficient for measurement of feed intake, whereas a 70-d test was required to measure growth rate, feed conversion, and residual feed intake without compromising the accuracy of measurement. When a 70-d test is used to measure growth rate, feed conversion, and residual feed intake there is minimal loss in accuracy when weights are collected every 2 wk instead of weekly, but a further increase in the interval between weights to 5 wk caused a decline in the accuracy of the test. Therefore a 70-d test with cattle weighed every 2 wk seems to be optimal for measuring these traits in British breed cattle.

Longevity and lifetime productivity of cows in a purebred Hereford and two multibreed synthetic groups under range conditions.

Records on 983 cows born during a period of 10 yr (1966 to 1975) were used to estimate longevity and lifetime productivity of cows raised under range conditions. The cows were from a purebred Hereford and two multibreed synthetic groups, one composed of beef breeds (Beef Synthetic #1) and the other composed of two-thirds dairy breeds and one-third beef breeds (Dairy Synthetic). The cows were raised under a stringent culling system in which all heifers were exposed to bulls as yearlings and were expected to wean a calf each year thereafter or they were culled. Cows were also culled for other reasons, such as severe calving problems, bad udders, and leg and feet problems. The mean longevity was 4.2 yr; cows from the synthetic breed groups produced longer (P < .01) than Hereford cows, due to a relatively faster rate of removal at all ages in the purebred Hereford group. The mean values per cow for lifetime productivity traits were 2.7 and 2.5 for number of calves born and weaned and 101.9 kg and 482.9 kg for weight of calf born and weaned, respectively. Male calves were not castrated, and weights of female calves were adjusted to a male basis. Over their lifetimes, Dairy Synthetic cows were more productive, in terms of number and weight of calves born and weaned, than Beef Synthetic #1 cows, which in turn were more productive than purebred Hereford cows (P < .01).

A comparison of natural service fertility of yearling and two-year-old bulls on pasture.

The natural service fertility of yearling bulls on pasture was compared with that of 2-year-old bulls in a study (2 experiments) which involved a total of 748 composite breed cows over 3 breeding seasons. Other factors such as age of the cows, breed, year effects, and the sequence in which bulls of a particular age were assigned to cows were also evaluated. Pregnancy and calving rates and calving date were used as criteria for assessing fertility. The age of the bull, breed, year, or bull sequence did not significantly affect any of the traits studied. The age of cow was important in all the traits studied, with mature cows (5 years and older at breeding) calving earlier (P < 0.05) than the youngest group (2 years old at breeding) of cows, in both experiments. The pregnancy rate was also lower in the younger cows than in the mature cows in the first experiment. The results suggest that the age range of the cow herd is more important in determining herd fertility than the age of the bull or any of the parameters studied.

Preweaning growth performance of west African shorthorn cattle and their Jersey crossbreds in Ghana.

Calf records on 621 West African Shorthorn (WASH) and 3 grades of Jersey x WASH crossbreds were analysed for the effects of the level of Jersey breeding and other factors on birth weight, 205-day weaning weight and average daily gain (ADG). Crossbred calves were significantly (P < 0.01) heavier at birth than purebred WASH and birth weights increased with increasing level of Jersey breeding. No significant differences were established for 205-day weaning weight, however ADG declined with increasing level of Jersey breeding suggesting possible problems of adaptation for calves of over 75% Jersey breeding. Age of dam effect was significant and linear (P < 0.0001) for birth weight and significant and quadratic (P < 0.01) for weaning weight and ADG, with values increasing from 3-year old dams to a peak in 7 year old dams.

Effects of body condition and temporary calf removal on reproductive performance of range cows.

The effects of body condition at calving and breeding and temporary calf removal prior to the start of the breeding season on reproductive performance of 323 cows from two breed groups were studied over two breeding seasons. Body condition score at calving was significantly and positively correlated with two body condition indices, which were based on weight-to-height ratio measured at calving and at the start of the breeding season. While the two body condition indices were strongly associated with the age of the cow, the body condition score, based on palpation and visual appraisal, was less affected by the age of the cow. Cows with a body condition score of 3.0 at calving had a shorter calving interval (P<0.02), higher pregnancy rate (P<0.08), and higher number of calves born (P<0.10) than cows which had body condition scores lower than 3.0 at calving. Temporary (48 h) calf removal prior to the start of the breeding season did not have a significant influence on the calving interval, pregnancy rate or the number of calves born nor on the weaning weights of their calves. Differences in reproductive performance between the two breed groups of cows were not significant.