VII CHAPTER 1: Introduction 1 CHAPTER 2: Background 3 2.1 Feed intake in transition period 5 2.2 Regulation of feed intake 7 2.3 Feeding behaviour 14 2.4 Measuring of feeding behaviour 16 2.5 Physiological changes and metabolic disorders during transition period and early lactation 22 2.6 Sensor-based monitoring of feeding behaviour and feed intake as well as metabolic-related production diseas...

In this paper we respond to the criticisms of Provenza et al. (1998) that our framework of learning and feeding motivation (Day et al. 1998) resorts to higher order goals, which cannot be falsified by experimentation. We assert that in order to be able to predict the feeding behaviour of animals we first need to understand what they are trying to achieve (i.e. invoke teleonomy). We then detail ...

Cranial kinesis is an important feature in avian feeding behaviour and involves the transmission of quadrate movement to the upper bill by the Pterygoid-Palatinum Complex (PPC). The PPC in Palaeognathae is remarkably different from that found in Neognathae. In this study we analyse whether the special morphology of the PPC is an adaptation to the feeding behaviour of the Palaeognathae. Behaviou...

Blood platelet behaviour was studied in six patients during infusion of an Intralipid-based intravenous feeding mixture. Lower concentrations of sodium arachidonate were required to induce platelets to aggregate and to undergo a release reaction during intravenous feeding than were required before or after intravenous feeding. This change was not due to a change in serum albumin level. The plat...

In groups of socially foraging animals, feeding behaviour may change with group size in response to varying cost-benefit trade-offs. Numerous studies have described group-size effects on group-average feeding behaviour, particularly emphasizing an increase in scrounging incidence for larger groups, where individuals (scroungers) feed from the food sources others (producers) discovered. However,...

The brain has an essential role in maintaining a balance between energy intake and expenditure of the body. Deciphering the processes underlying the decision-making for timely feeding of appropriate amounts may improve our understanding of physiological and psychological disorders related to feeding control. Here, we identify a group of appetite-enhancing neurons in a behavioural screen for fli...

Malaria parasites alter mosquito feeding behaviour in a way that enhances parasite transmission. This is widely considered a prime example of manipulation of host behaviour to increase onward transmission, but transient immune challenge in the absence of parasites can induce the same behavioural phenotype. Here, we show that alterations in feeding behaviour depend on the timing and dose of immu...