Exploiting plant diversity and phenology for livestock health under climate change

利用植物多样性和物候学促进气候变化下的牲畜健康

• 批准号: 2643192
• 金额: --
• 依托单位: Queen's University Belfast
• 依托单位国家: 英国
• 项目类别: Studentship
• 财政年份: 2021
• 资助国家: 英国
• 起止时间: 2021 至 无数据
• 项目状态: 未结题
• 来源: https://gtr.ukri.org/projects?ref=studentship-2643192
• 关键词: Exploiting; plant; diversity; phenology; livestock

Climate change presents serious challenges to livestock grazing systems, both for mitigation and adaptation. Legislative and consumer concerns increasingly prioritise environmental impacts. Simultaneously, climate warming favours increased disease threats just as antimicrobial resistance threatens the effectiveness of chemical control [1]. More diverse utilisation of plant resources has the potential to address several of these challenges: for example, deep-rooted plants such as shrubs and trees increase carbon sequestration, reduce water and nutrient run-off from extreme rainfall events, and provide nutritious fodder with proven antiparasitic effects, reducing reliance on chemical de-wormers [2,3]. Benefits are insufficiently realised because they are poorly characterised for mainstream livestock systems in the UK, compared with silvo-pastoral systems in warmer regions. Further, although integrating trees into grass-based systems confers resilience and ecological benefits, production efficiency could decrease in the short term, inhibiting uptake. This project addresses the hypothesis that aligning plant phenology with seasonal parasite risks can enhance the effectiveness of tree-based solutions to disease threats, and hence their economic value. The objectives are organised around three distinct but complementary ecosystem services from trees on farmland, focusing on parasite control Plant phenology as an indicator of parasite risk. Because plants use climatic cues to trigger seasonal events (=phenology), such events might predict risk periods for parasite infection. The spring scour worm Nematodirus battus emerges in response to rising soil temperature, and again in autumn when soil temperature falls to within a defined range [4]. Annual data on dates of leaf burst, flowering and leaf fall for UK tree and woodland/hedgerow plant species will be extracted from Nature's Calendar (UK Phenology Network) and compared with records of N. battus outbreaks from the VIDA veterinary laboratory database [5]. Results will test the hypothesis that spring and autumn events in particular plants can predict disease risk in a given year and location, and support treatment decisions by farmers.Tree fodder as a targeted nutritional resource. Tanniferous tree leaves attenuate parasite impacts by reducing establishment and survival in the gut, by protecting protein from rumen degradation and consequently correcting protein loss in parasitized animals, and by dietary displacement of more highly contaminated lower-growing plants such as grasses [3]. Used alone over sustained periods, however, their nutritional value is often low, and excessively high tannin concentrations reduce feed intake and digestion. Tannin concentration and chemical structure will be analysed for ash, apple and willow leaves, during growth and after leaf-fall or drying, with chemical composition, available protein-energy content, and in-vitro antiparasitic efficacy. Results will calibrate feed basket formulation for targeted tree fodder supplementation at key times of parasite risk (e.g. summer coppice or pollard for early season parasite suppression; fallen leaves for removal of late-season drug-resistant worms). Selected mixes will be evaluated for digestibility and emissions in rumen simulators, and for palatability in feeding trials. Transmission models [7] will evaluate consequences of targeted seasonal intervention for parasite epidemiology and selection of drug resistance.Modification of parasite transmission in treescapes. Trees improve drainage and soil structure, potentially reducing parasite transmission; while shading and animal aggregation can increase parasite availability [6]. Net effects could be complex [7], and affect how best to plan and utilise trees on pasture. This component will measure parasites and their environmental correlates (nematode larval density around translocated dung; summer soil saturation for liver fluke

气候变化给畜牧业系统带来了严重的挑战，无论是缓解还是适应。立法和消费者的关注越来越优先考虑环境影响。与此同时，气候变暖有利于增加疾病的威胁，就像抗生素耐药性威胁化学控制的有效性一样[1]。植物资源的更多样化利用有可能解决其中的几个挑战：例如，灌木和树木等深根植物增加碳固存，减少极端降雨事件造成的水和养分流失，并提供具有抗寄生虫效果的营养饲料，减少对化学驱虫剂的依赖[2，3]。效益没有充分实现，因为他们是穷人的特点，在英国的主流畜牧业系统相比，在温暖的地区的森林牧区系统。此外，虽然将树木纳入以草为基础的系统可以带来复原力和生态效益，但生产效率可能在短期内下降，抑制吸收。该项目提出了一个假设，即将植物物候与季节性寄生虫风险相结合可以提高基于树木的疾病威胁解决方案的有效性，从而提高其经济价值。这些目标是围绕农田树木的三种不同但互补的生态系统服务组织的，重点是寄生虫控制植物物候学作为寄生虫风险的指标。由于植物利用气候线索来触发季节性事件（=物候），这些事件可能预测寄生虫感染的风险期。春季冲刷蠕虫Nematodirus battus出现是对土壤温度上升的反应，秋季土壤温度福尔斯下降到一定范围内时再次出现[4]。英国树木和林地/绿篱植物物种的叶片爆裂，开花和落叶日期的年度数据将从自然日历（英国物候网络）中提取，并与N。来自维达兽医实验室数据库的蝙蝠爆发[5]。结果将测试的假设，春季和秋季的事件，特别是植物可以预测疾病的风险，在给定的一年和地点，并支持农民的治疗决策。产单宁的树叶通过减少肠道中的建立和存活，通过保护蛋白质免受瘤胃降解并因此纠正寄生动物中的蛋白质损失，以及通过饮食取代更高污染的低生长植物如草来减轻寄生虫的影响[3]。然而，长期单独使用，其营养价值往往很低，过高的单宁浓度会降低饲料摄入量和消化。单宁浓度和化学结构将分析灰，苹果和杨柳叶，在生长过程中和落叶或干燥后，与化学成分，可用的蛋白质能量含量，和体外抗寄生虫功效。结果将校准饲料篮配方，在寄生虫风险的关键时期（例如，夏季矮林或修剪用于早期寄生虫抑制;落叶用于去除后期抗药性蠕虫）针对性树木饲料补充。将在瘤胃模拟器中评价所选混合物的消化率和排放，并在饲养试验中评价适口性。传播模型[7]将评估针对寄生虫流行病学和抗药性选择的有针对性的季节性干预的后果。树木改善排水和土壤结构，可能减少寄生虫传播;而遮荫和动物聚集可以增加寄生虫的可用性[6]。净效应可能是复杂的[7]，并影响如何最好地规划和利用牧场上的树木。这一部分将测量寄生虫及其环境相关因素（粪便周围的线虫幼虫密度;夏季土壤中肝吸虫的饱和度