Publications
NIBIOs employees contribute to several hundred scientific articles and research reports every year. You can browse or search in our collection which contains references and links to these publications as well as other research and dissemination activities. The collection is continously updated with new and historical material.
2020
Abstract
Genetic selection in commercial sheep production has mainly focussed on production traits and to a large extent ignoring behavioural traits, such as response towards predators. The Icelandic leadersheep is a sheep breed selected and known for its special behavioural traits, such as leading the flock and bringing it home from pasture in case of danger. Those traits are also said to be beneficial in areas with a high predator pressure. In this study, it was investigated if there are behavioural differences in sheep flocks with and without a leadersheep present. Behaviour of sheep flocks was observed before, during and after a predator test, in small groups of Icelandic sheep with or without a leadersheep in the group. Eleven groups of Icelandic sheep with six ewes in each group were observed in a test arena while a human, a dog and a drone passed through the pasture. Six of the groups included a leadersheep and the remaining five did not. Groups including a leadersheep spent more time grazing after both the human and dog test, indicating a faster recovering to normal behaviour. They were also located close to the exit during the dog test compared to groups without a leadersheep, fitting well with the assertion that leadersheep bring the flock home in case of danger. During the drone test, groups with a leadersheep however spent more time moving around compared to the other groups. Since the sheep had experienced both humans and dogs before, but not drones, this may indicate that groups with leadersheep recovered quickly from the figurants they had experienced before, but tended to react more in the test which was a new situation. In conclusion, it appears likely that the earlier selection for leader traits in the leadersheep have indeed changed both their own behaviour and also that this has an effect on the behaviour of group members.
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Authors
Johannes Breidenbach Janis Ivanovs Annika Kangas Mats Nilsson Thomas Nord-Larsen Rasmus AstrupAbstract
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Authors
Johannes Breidenbach Lars T. Waser Misganu Debella-Gilo Johannes Schumacher Johannes Rahlf Marius Hauglin Stefano Puliti Rasmus AstrupAbstract
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Johannes BreidenbachAbstract
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Authors
Andreas Hagenbo Yasmine Piñuela Carles Castano Juan Martınez de Aragon Sergio de-Miguel Josu G. Alday Jose Antonio BonetAbstract
* In forests, ectomycorrhizal mycelium is pivotal for driving soil carbon and nutrient cycles, but how ectomycorrhizal mycelial dynamics vary in ecosystems with drought periods is unknown. We quantified the production and turnover of mycorrhizal mycelium in Mediterranean Pinus pinaster, Pinus sylvestris and Quercus ilex forests and related the estimates to standardised precipitation index (SPI), to study how mycelial dynamics relates to tree species and drought‐moisture conditions. * Production and turnover of mycelium was estimated between July and February, by quantifying the fungal biomass (ergosterol) in ingrowth mesh bags and using statistical modelling. SPI for time scales of 1–3 months was calculated from precipitation records and precipitation data over the study period. * Forests dominated by Pinus trees displayed higher biomass but were seasonally more variable, as opposed to Q. ilex forests where the mycelial biomass remained lower and stable over the season. Production and turnover, respectively, varied between 1.4–5.9 kg ha−1 d−1 and 7.2–9.9 times yr−1 over the different forest types and were positively correlated with 2‐month and 3‐month SPI over the study period. * Our results demonstrated that mycorrhizal mycelial biomass varied with season and tree species and we speculate that production and turnover are related to physiology and plant host performance during drought.
Authors
Fatima Heinicke Xiangfu Zhong Karola Manuela Zucknick Johannes Breidenbach Arvind Yegambaram Meenakshi Sundaram Siri Tennebø Flåm Magnus Leithaug Marianne Dalland Simon Rayner Benedicte Alexandra Lie Gregor GilfillanAbstract
No abstract has been registered
Abstract
No abstract has been registered