Highland Summer Pastures Play a Fundamental Role for Dairy Systems in an Italian Alpine Region

In the Alps, summer farms are temporary units where the livestock herds are moved during summer to graze on highland pastures. This study aimed to analyze the role of summer farms in the dairy farming systems of the Trento province, in the eastern Italian Alps. Data on the structures and management of the 395 active summer farms were collected from the veterinarian services of the province: 345 summer farms keep dairy cattle (83 only replacement, and 262 also lactating cows). Almost all the replacement cattle and more than one third (8,775 vs 24,934 heads) of the dairy cows reared in the permanent farms of the province are still moved to highland pastures during summer. Cows on milk of local and dual purpose breeds are moved to highland pastures more frequently than those of specialized breeds. On 610 permanent farms, we analyzed the differences between the units moving/not moving the lactating cows to summer farms. The traditional farms, with tie stalls, local breeds, small-medium herd size and low productivity used more frequently summer pastures than the “intensive” farms. Transhumance still plays a fundamental role for the dairy sector in this Alpine area, because it allows access to public contribution and is complementary to the management of traditional farms. To better assess its sustainability, these functions should be further investigated in relation with the role of summer farms in the conservation of biodiversity, cultural landscape, and touristic attractiveness

Factors affecting growth performance in beef production: an on farm survey

This study aimed to investigate sources of variation of average daily gain in beef cattle, with an on farm approach, in the Veneto region. Data of 38707 animals fattened in 29 farms and belonging to 5 genotypes (Charolais, Charolais Female, French Crossbred, Limousin and Polish Friesian) were analysed considering type of farm, farm nested within type, genotype, housing system, arrival live weight, percentage of dead and injured animals, season of sale and diet. Genotype, farm, percentage of unhealthy animals and season of sale significantly affected average daily gain. Charolais and French Crossbred showed the highest values of average daily gain, Charolais Female the lowest. The effect of farm suggests that management is very important for growth performance in beef cattle. Moreover, batches of animals with high percentage of dead and injured presented lower values of average daily gain. In spring-summer 2003 an extremely hot climate was unfavourable for growth performance

Wild red deer [Cervus elaphus L.) grazing may seriously reduce forage production in mountain meadows

This study aimed at estimating the impact of red deer grazing on the productivity of meadows located in Pian Cansiglio, north-eastern Italian Pre-Alps. These meadows (383 ha; average elevation 1000 m asl are managed for hay/silage production (1-2 cuts per season) and are included in a protected area that hosts a high density of deer (around 30 heads/100 ha). In 2008 and 2010, dry matter (DM) production and loss due to deer grazing were estimated with exclusion cages (1 m2; 48 exclusion cages in 2008 and 52 in 2010). Night counts with spotlights were conducted to index deer use of meadows plots. DM production inside the cages was fairly good for the area (first and second cut: 5079 - 2193 Kg DM/ha in 2008, and 4200 - 2615 Kg DM/ha in 2010). DM production outside the cages was significantly lower (first and second cut in 2008: 4314-1389 Kg DM/ha, and in 2010: 3376-2052 Kg DM/ha). Therefore, the magnitude of losses was of 15-20% in the first and 25-40% in the second cut. DM losses in the different meadow plots were positively correlated with index of deer use, which in some plots was as high as 7-8 heads/ha. Deer grazing reduced also crude protein (CP) content of forage (15.6±4.4% DM inside exclusion cages and 13.8±3.5% DM outside), with losses being greater where CP content was higher. This study demonstrates that high densities of grazing deer may seriously impact on forage production and quality

The alpine summer pastures in the Veneto Region: management systems

The aim of this study was to identify the management systems of the alpine summer pastures of the Veneto region and their geographical distribution, by means of detailed questionnaires on 417 holdings. A non-hierarchical cluster analysis identified 5 different management systems: 1: milk and cheese production, 2: milk and cheese with agritourism, 3: milk without cheese, 4: disadvantaged holdings with prevalence of sheep and goats; 5: holdings with dry and replacement cows. The different groups showed also a clear tendency to concentrate spatially in different portions of the study area. Regional policies should consider this variability to better sustain the alpine summer pasture management systems

Transhumance of dairy cows to highland summer pastures interacts with breed to influence body condition, milk yield and quality

This paper aimed at testing the differences of adaptability of bovine dairy, dual purpose and local breeds during the summer transhumance to highland pastures (summer farms), evaluating temporal variations of body condition and of milk yield and quality. Data were from 799 dairy cows of specialised (Holstein Friesian and Brown Swiss), dual purpose (Simmental) and local (mostly Rendena and Alpine Grey) breeds, and were collected before and after the transhumance in 109 permanent dairy farms, and during transhumance in 15 summer farms of the Autonomous Province of Trento, north-eastern Italy. Body Condition Score (BCS), milk production and quality (fat, protein, casein, lactose, urea, SCS) were analysed for the fixed effects of breed, parity, days in milk, month, supplementary concentrate level, and for the random effects of summer farm and individual cow. Body condition score was influenced by transhumance to summer farms, with low values in July and a recovery at the end of the period. This pattern was particularly marked in the specialised breeds. Similarly, also milk production declined, especially for Holstein Friesian and Brown Swiss, so that towards the end of transhumance all breeds had similar milk productions. Returning to permanent farms did not compensate the specialised breeds for the production loss experienced at the beginning of the grazing season. In conclusion, local and dual purpose breeds adapt better than specialised breeds to the summer pastures, and this results into an important reduction of their productive gaps (with lower variations of milk quality) and in maintaining body fat reserves

An analysis of roe deer (Capreolus capreolus) traffic collisions in the Belluno province, eastern Italian Alps

Data of roe deer traffic collisions from 1989 to 2004 in the Belluno province were analyzed to describe patterns of road kills by zone, season and sex and to compare resulting annual trends and sex ratios with those estimated for roe deer population. The province was divided in 2 districts on the base of differences in climate, landscape and roe deer population status. Pearson's simple correlation was used to investigate the associations, in the two districts, among road kills data, year, population density, traffic index, and snow depth. Bonferroni's confidential intervals to 95% of significance were used to compare the monthly distributions of collisions between sexes and between districts. In conclusion, the analysis of car accidents may not reflect population trends and sex ratios when traffic rates change and when different ecological factors, others from deer density, influence the probability of deer to incur in a car accident. In addition, differences of accident probability between sexes and months can be found in areas with different landscapes, climates and population structures. These factors should be evaluated in order to manage accident risk and to understand the potential of car accidents records as a tool for monitoring population status

Wild boar (Sus scrofa) damages to mountain grassland. A case study in the Belluno province, eastern Italian Alps

Five alpine pastures (34±14ha) of the Belluno province, patchily damaged by wild boar, were chosen to investigate on main environmental parameters that might influence the rooting sites selection. Eighty damage sites were examined. For each damage surrounding type of grassland and distance from woodland were recorded and mapped using a G.I.S. software. Proportional availability (% of total pasture surface) of grassland types (rough grass, rich grass, degraded, shrubs and trees) and classes of distance from woodland (120m), and the respective use (% of total damage events) were estimated and compared with Chi-square test. A selection index was calculated as use/availability and Bonferroni confidence intervals (95%) were used to test significance. Degraded pastures and areas closer to woodland blocks were preferred. A vegetational analysis inside and outside the damaged areas showed a reduction in frequency of species producing bulbs and rhizomes, and in Poaceae as respect to other families of lower forage value. Future studies should investigate the role of different root forms, and invertebrate richness, on rooting site selection. Longer term studies are also needed to better define the evolution of pasture botanical composition of damaged areas