The extensive use of 3-nitro-4-hydroxybenzene arsonic acid (roxarsone) in the production of broiler chickens can lead to increased soil arsenic concentration and arsenic contaminated dust. While roxarsone is the dominant arsenic species in fresh litter, inorganic As (V) predominates in composted litter. Microbial activity has been implicated as the cause, but neither the specific processes nor ...

The suitability of leaves for use as broiler litter was evaluated in four 49-d floor pen trials of 150 Avian × Avian female chickens each. In each trial, 25 broiler chicks were weighed and randomly assigned to one of six pens at a density of 1.2 m2 per bird. There were two replicates of each of the following three treatments: 1) pine wood shaving (control), 2) a mix of 50% pine wood shaving and...

The objective of this study was to compare the performance, egg quality, and microbial contamination of egg shells from hens maintained in different housing systems, such as conventional and enriched cages, litter, and aviaries. The housing system significantly (P < 0.001) influenced the performance characteristics. The highest egg production, lowest daily feed consumption, and feed conversion ...

Chrysanthemoides monilifera subsp. monilifera (boneseed), a weed of national significance in Australia, threatens indigenous species and crop production through allelopathy. We aimed to identify phenolic compounds produced by boneseed and to assess their phytotoxicity on native species. Phenolic compounds in water and methanol extracts, and in decomposed litter-mediated soil leachate were ident...

Application of litter and other organic by-products to agricultural land off site of animal production facilities has created both environmental concerns and agro-economic opportunities, but limited long-term, field-scale data are available to guide management decisions. Thus, the objective of this study was to determine the water quality effects of repeated annual poultry litter application as...

Litter size is one of the most reliable state-dependent life-history traits that indicate parental investment in polytocous (litter-bearing) mammals. The tendency to optimize litter size typically increases with decreasing availability of resources during the period of parental investment. To determine whether this tactic is also influenced by resource limitations prior to reproduction, we exam...

Poultry litter provides nutrients for crop and pasture production; however, it also contains fecal bacteria, sex hormones (17beta-estradiol and testosterone) and antibiotic residues that may contaminate surface waters. Our objective was to quantify transport of fecal bacteria, estradiol, testosterone and antibiotic residues from a Cecil sandy loam managed since 1991 under no-till (NT) and conve...

This paper presents a social efficiency analysis of mandatory deposits on beverage containers. Five kinds of resource effects are identified, evaluated and added up: (1) litter (both pickup and “eyesore” costs) ; (2) solid waste collection; (3) container costs; (4) production and distribution costs; and (5) consumer convenience. It is shown that the desirability, on efficiency grounds alone, of...

BACKGROUND Maintaining optimal reproductive and litter performance is essential for meeting economic targets in commercial pig production. Treatment with exogenous gonadotropins in sows after weaning or in gilts after altrenogest treatment has been used to stimulate follicular development leading to more piglets born and eventually higher birth weights. The effect of peforelin on litter perform...

Compensatory or 'catch-up' growth may be an adaptive mechanism that buffers the growth trajectory of young organisms from deviations caused by reduced food availability. Theory generally assumes that rapid juvenile compensatory growth impacts reproduction only through its positive effects on age and size at maturation, but potential reproductive costs to juvenile compensatory growth remain virt...