Melioidosis is an emerging infectious disease of humans and animals in the tropics caused by the soil bacterium Burkholderia pseudomallei. Despite high fatality rates, the ecology of B.pseudomallei remains unclear. We used a combination of field and laboratory studies to investigate B.pseudomallei colonization of native and exotic grasses in northern Australia. Multivariable and spatial analyse...

Eight forages (alfalfa, birdsfoot trefoil, red clover, bromegrass, orchardgrass, perennial ryegrass, quackgrass, and timothy) at three maturities were evaluated for ruminal DM, CP, and NDF degradation kinetics. Duplicate dacron bags were incubated for 0, 3, 6, 10, 13, 25, 48, and 72 h in two late lactation Holstein cows fitted with ruminal cannulas over eight experimental periods. Species and m...

At the species level, plants can respond to climate changes by changing their leaf traits; however, there is scant information regarding the responses of morphological, physiological and anatomical traits of plant functional types (PFTs) to aridity. Herein, the leaf traits of five PFTs representing 17 plant species in temperate grasslands were examined along a large-scale aridity gradient in no...

Plants respond to changes in atmospheric carbon dioxide. To herbivores, the decreased leaf protein contents and increased C/N ratios common to all leaves under elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide imply a reduction in food quality. In addition to these fine-scale adjustments, the abundance of C(3) and C(4) plants (particularly grasses) are affected by atmospheric carbon dioxide. C(4) grasses cur...

BACKGROUND Interspecific hybrid bermudagrass [Cynodon dactylon (L.) Pers. x C. transvaalensis Burtt-Davy] is one of the most widely used grasses on golf courses, with cultivars derived from 'Tifgreen' or 'Tifdwarf' particularly used for putting greens. Many bermudagrass cultivars established for putting greens can be genetically unstable and lead to the occurrence of undesirable off-type grasse...

The objective of this research was to examine the effect of high concentrations of nonprotein nitrogen (NPN) on the voluntary food intake of sheep fed high-quality grasses. Wether lambs (n = 6 per treatment) were fed dried switchgrass (Panicum virgatum L.; Exp. 1) or dried tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea Schreb.; Exp. 2). In both experiments, urea was added to the dried forage at 0 (control), ...

Land, livestock, and wildlife managers need to understand the nutritional dynamics of forages to sustain adequate growth and reproduction of their animals and/or assure equitable payment for forages. Despite a long history of livestock grazing in the northern Great Basin, seasonal and annual nutritional dynamics of many of the region’s prominent grasses have not been described. We addressed thi...

Enemy release of exotic plants from soil pathogens has been tested by examining plant-soil feedback effects in repetitive growth cycles. However, positive soil feedback may also be due to enhanced benefit from the local arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). Few studies actually have tested pathogen effects, and none of them did so in arid savannas. In the Kalahari savanna in Botswana, we compared...