Life Sciences Commons^™

Kentucky Forage Spokesperson Contest, Kentucky Forage And Grassland Council

Kentucky Grazing Conference

No abstract provided.

Can I Afford To Spray For Weeds?, Scott Flynn

Kentucky Grazing Conference

A common question among managers of grazing operations is “At what level of weed pressure does it become economical to apply herbicides on pastures?” Unfortunately there isn’t just one answer to this question as production goals and practices differ between operations and even within an operation over time. Regardless, the real question being ask is if weed control will increase profit per acre.

Grazing Options For Fall And Winter, Edward N. Ballard

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Feed costs represent the major cost in most livestock production systems. A recently completed analysis of 225 Standardized Performance Analysis (SPA) Beef Cow Records on herds in Illinois and Iowa showed that feed cost was the overriding factor determining profitability, explaining over 57 percent of the herd-to-herd variation.

Summer Grazing Options, S. Ray Smith, Krista Lea

Kentucky Grazing Conference

During the last 15 years there have been several new forage species that have emerged as useful in grazing systems and many new varieties have been released of traditional species. There are many sources of information on summer grazing options. We especially encourage you to read the publication written by Dr. Garry Lacefield and colleagues, “Extending Grazing and Reducing Stored Feed Needs” (AGR-199, www.uky.edu/Ag/Forage/agr199.pdf). I have used information from this publication and other publications from the University of Kentucky Forage Website (www.uky.edu/Ag/Forage) in writing this article.

Technical Service Provider: What Is It And Why Is It Important To You?, Bill Payne

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Progressive graziers and forage managers are continually looking to improve their operations’ productivity. The opportunity exists to have a Grazing Management Plan developed for your operation at little or no cost to you. By contacting your county NRCS office, you can apply to have this plan developed by a Technical Service Provider, an independent professional certified by NRCS.

Forage Legumes: Their Importance And Management In Profitable Livestock Systems, Ben M. Goff

Kentucky Grazing Conference

The landscape of most Kentucky operations is heavily dominated by the utilization of cool-season grasses as the primary source of forage for livestock. However, legumes species, such alfalfa and red or white clovers are an essential component to a complete forage-livestock system. Relative to grasses alone, incorporating legumes into a mixture has the benefits of improving the nutritive value of the available forage in the field, extending the grazing season by increasing the yield of forage during the early summer months, and providing a more economical source of N compared to commercial fertilizers. This paper will briefly describe each of …

Maximizing Stocker Gains On Pastures, Jeff Lehmkuhler

Kentucky Grazing Conference

Stocker enterprises by definition utilize pasture forages to add weight to light weight feeder cattle. These operations add value to calves by assimilating small groups of calves and combining them into larger uniform packages. Stocker operators also enhance quality through livestock husbandry practices that “upgrade” feeders which could include castrating bulls, dehorning, improving immunity and other attributes. In an effort to optimize profit margins, stocker operators must manage feeders to ensure high rates of gain while finding a balance in stocking rates that provide adequate gains per acre.

Grazing Method: Tool Or Toolbox?, Garry D. Lacefield

Kentucky Grazing Conference

This conference makes the 15th consecutive year we have devoted a full day to Grazing. Kentucky is a great state for grazing animals since we have a relatively long pasture season, can grow many forage grasses and legumes and a long tradition of producing quality animal products from quality pasture. We have tremendous potential to improve our overall grazing efficiency and the discussion throughout the day will address many of the practical strategies for improvements.

Foreword And Kfgc Award Winners [2014], Garry D. Lacefield, Christi L. Forsythe

Kentucky Grazing Conference

No abstract provided.

Precipitation Variability And Nitrogen Deposition Alter Root Distribution In A Tallgrass Prairie, Emmalyn P. Terracciano, Michael Schuster, Jeffrey Dukes

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Climate change and increases in nitrogen deposition impact ecosystems globally. Projected atmospheric warming allows rain to fall in larger events with longer dry periods in between, increasing rainfall variability in many regions. Concurrently, the combustion of fossil fuels and the heavy use of nitrogen fertilizers continue to increase the availability of nitrogen globally. However, not much is known about how these global change factors, increased rainfall variability and nitrogen deposition, interact with each other to affect ecosystem functions, particularly belowground where root production contributes to soil carbon pools- an important component in regulating climate. In order to study these factors, …

Using Stable Isotopes To Quantify Nitrogen Fates In Container Plants, Sam Raimann, Greg Michalski, Michael V. Mickelbart

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Currently, in the agriculture field, it is not yet known the accurate amount of Nitrogen in fertilizer that plants take up. This statistic, known as the Nitrogen Use Efficiency is currently known to be within the 30-50% range (Lea-Cox and Ross, 2001). This is very important figure to know and it is a figure that can be improved, and therefore much time, energy, and resources can be saved. This research project will use concepts involving stable isotopes to examine red maple plant material and the soilless media that the plants were grown in. Three different isotope-labelled fertilizer treatments will be …

Evaluating Contaminants Of Emerging Concern In Commercial Biosolid-Based Fertilizers, John Hemmerling, Michael L. Mashtare, Linda S. Lee

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The production and popularity of commercially available biosolid-based fertilizers are increasing because of their economic, environmental, and plant nutrition benefits, particularly in urban and suburban areas. Because biosolid-based fertilizers are derived from waste water treatment plant residuals, we hypothesized that there is the potential for micropollutants to persist in these products. Their presence would be of particular concern due to their potential impact on human and ecological health and risk of bioaccumulation. This study involves quantifying contaminants of emerging concern in three biosolid-based fertilizers, and 2 non-biosolid-based fertilizers, a composted animal manure and an organic compost. Our extraction method employed …

High Level Protein Expression Slows Down Rate Of Growth Of Bacterial Broth Cultures, Saad Chaudhry, Kenechukwu Ekwemalor, Shobhit Keswani, Odutayo Odunuge

Undergraduate Research Conference

No abstract provided.

Determination Of Anions In Lanana Creek By Ion Chromatography, Tania Benavides

Undergraduate Research Conference

Abstract

Lanana Creek is one of two springs that surround Nacogdoches, TX. Lanana Creek starts southwest of Lake Naconiche, conjoining with several other bodies of water along its path, and becomes part of the Angelina River. This body of water eventually ends in the Gulf of Mexico which may contribute to the dead zone. Contaminants in water may be of small concentration; however, prolonged exposure could produce many negative effects. To prevent further contamination, the source of the contamination must be identified through testing the water for contaminants. Some possible sources of contamination may be from fertilizers and pesticides used …

Ice Caves On Extraterrestrial Bodies: What Are The Prospects For Speleogenesis And Detection?, Penelope J. Boston

The International Workshop on Ice Caves

Potential mechanisms for creating cavities in icy extraterrestrial bodies have been tentatively explored by several authors. On one hand we have examples of mechanisms that create caves in water ice here on Earth. In addition, there may be unique mechanisms on other Solar System objects that do not occur on Earth but might produce cavities, e.g. sublimation of comets upon perihelion passage. The methods of detecting such cavities depend upon the nature of the icy body in question, the potential for orbital or landed missions to visit those bodies in the future, and remote or landed methods for detecting the …

The State Of The Upper Bay Of Panama Wetlands: Ecological Significance, Environmental Policy, Urbanization, And Social Justice, Madeline A. Price

Celebration

I conducted this research while studying abroad with SIT Panama: Tropical Ecology, Marine Ecosystems, and Biodiversity Conservation. This is a multidisciplinary investigation of the Upper Bay of Panama wetlands, a 49,000 hectare region east of Panama City that features mangrove, intertidal mudflat, and grassland habitat internationally recognized as a stopover site for two million shorebirds every migration season. However, with economic pressure to increase urban development in the area, this land’s protected status under the Ramsar convention was suspended for a year in April 2012. By compiling scientific studies, news articles, photographs, and interviews with local conservationists and community members, …

Assessing Water Treatment Residuals As A Filtration Media For Phosphorus Removal At Wapato Lake - Tacoma, Wa, Brian Hite, Megan Hintz

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference

Wapato Lake in Tacoma, WA is a 23-acre urban lake that has had problems of eutrophication and toxic algae blooms for over a hundred years. Inputs of phosphorus from both environmental and anthropogenic sources contribute to this problem. Much of the 900-acre watershed consists of residential or commercial development, increasing the amount of stormwater containing increased levels of phosphorus. Past management efforts designed to control eutrophication at Wapato included constructing a diversion structure to route phosphorus rich stormwater around the lake. This plan increased the retention time of Wapato to ≈ 8.5 years. We have been tasked by the City …

From Boat To Beach: Using Drift Cards To Improve Our Knowledge Of Ocean Currents, Areas At Risk And Oil Spill Trajectories., Andrew Rosenberger, Alexandra Woodsworth, Ross Dixon

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference

In October 2013, Raincoast Conservation Foundation and Georgia Strait Alliance launched 1644 drift cards from 9 locations along the shipping route through the Salish Sea to Vancouver, British Columbia. Drift cards are 4x6” pieces of marine plywood painted bright yellow and numbered. Drift cards have historically been used to assess the way in which floating objects move in various contexts, including potential oil spills from underwater pipelines, marine park planning, sewage outflows and more. In this case, these drift cards were released in the context of Kinder Morgan’s plans to twin the Trans Mountain pipeline, which if approved would see …

Quantification Of Pharmaceuticals, Personal Care Products, And Perfluoroalkyl Substances In Elliott Bay Sediments (Seattle, Washington), Margaret Dutch, Sandra Weakland, Valerie Partridge

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference

Pharmaceuticals and Personal Care Products (PPCPs) and Perfluoroalkyl Substances (PFASs) are identified as Chemicals of Emerging Concern (CECs) in Puget Sound due to their potential to cause adverse toxicological, biological, and ecological effects when introduced into the environment. Characterization of sources, transport patterns, and the fate of CECs in the environment has been prioritized as part of the Puget Sound Ecosystem Monitoring Program toxics monitoring strategy. These chemicals have been detected in ground water, rivers, and streams in the Pacific Northwest and in influent, effluent, and biosolids from Puget Sound municipal wastewater treatment plants over the past decade. They were …

A Molecular Framework To Identify Novel Modes Of Action Of Endocrine Disrupting Compounds In Shellfish, Mackenzie Gavery, Steven (Steven Beyer) Roberts

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference

Concern over human and wildlife health has brought increased attention to a group of emerging environmental contaminants referred to as endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs). While progress has been made in describing the effects of these compounds, there are still gaps in our understanding of alternative modes of action and physiological effects outside of the reproductive axis, particularly in invertebrates. One way that EDCs may elicit these changes is through disruptions to normal epigenetic mechanisms. Epigenetics refers to heritable processes that alter gene activity without manipulating the underlying DNA sequence. Epigenetic marks, such as DNA methylation, are important regulators of gene …

Salmonid Early Response To Restored Freshwater Floodplain, Erin Morgan, Jeffery R. Cordell, Lauren Rich

Salish Sea Ecosystem Conference

Shortly after the construction of the Hansen Creek floodplain restoration project in 2010-2011, we conducted a pilot study of the initial use of the site by juvenile salmonids and the early development of invertebrate communities. We found that juvenile Coho salmon collected from the restored floodplain during periodic inundation events had higher instantaneous rations (a measure of feeding intensity) than Coho collected during regular monthly sampling in the creek channels. The floodplain site also had consistently higher insect abundances. Applying the data and lessons learned from the pilot study, we undertook a more comprehensive 13-month study of Hansen creek and …

Modeling Ratios With Potential Zero-Inflation To Assess Soil Nematode Community Structure, Joanna Zbylut, Leigh Murray, S. H. Thomas, J. Beacham, J. Schroeder, C. Fiore

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

The southern root-knot nematode (SRKN) and the weedy perennials, yellow nutsedge (YNS) and purple nutsedge (PNS) are simultaneously-occurring pests in the irrigated agricultural soils of southern New Mexico. Previous research has characterized SRKN, YNS and PNS as a mutually beneficial pest complex and has shown their enhanced population growth and survival when they occur together. In addition, it was shown that the density of nutsedge in a field could be used as a predictor of SRKN juveniles in the soil. In addition to SRKN, which is the most harmful of the plant parasitic nematodes, in southern New Mexico other species …

Developing Prediction Equations For Carcass Lean Mass In The Prescence Of Proportional Measurement Error, Zachary J. Hass, Ziqi Zhou, Bruce A. Craig

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

Published prediction equations for carcass lean mass are widely used by commercial pork producers for carcass valuation. These regression equations have been derived under the assumption that the predictors, such as back fat depth, are measured without error. In practice, however, it is known that these measurements are imperfect, with a variance that is proportional to the mean. In this paper, we consider both a linear and quadratic true relationship and compare regression fits among two methods that account for this error versus simply ignoring the additional error. We show that biased estimates of the relationship result if measurement error …

Check Based Stability Analysis Method And Its Application To Winter Wheat Variety Trials, Jixiang Wu, Karl Glover, Nathan Mueller

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

Finley-Wilson (FW) regression based stability analysis is highly dependent on the testing varieties and environments being used. In this study, we proposed a check based regression method to determine yield stability. One advantage of this method is its capability to determine yield stability through widely acceptable varieties and thus to provide more meaningful information to evaluate the potential use of new varieties. In addition, with integration a resampling technique, bootstrapping method, yield stability can be compared among different varieties/genotypes from either the same or different testing environments. As a demonstration, we applied this method to analyze the 2009- 2011 winter …

Use Of The Posterior Predictive Distribution As A Diagnostic Tool For Mixed Models, Matthew Kramer

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

The posterior predictive distribution (the distribution of data simulated from a model) has been used to flag model-data discrepancies in the Bayesian literature, and several approaches have been developed. The approach taken here differs from the others both conceptually and as realized. It works by comparing the "distance" between the data and model (as represented by pseudo-data simulated from a model) with "distance" within the model. The distance within the model is calculated by generating pseudo-data from it, using each set of these pseudo-data to reestimate the model, and then generating pseudo-data from them, matching the way the original data …

Bayesian Inference For A Covariance Matrix, Ignacio Alvarez, Jarad Niemi, Matt Simpson

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

Covariance matrix estimation arises in multivariate problems including multivariate normal sampling models and regression models where random effects are jointly modeled, e.g. random-intercept, random-slope models. A Bayesian analysis of these problems requires a prior on the covariance matrix. Here we compare an inverse Wishart, scaled inverse Wishart, hierarchical inverse Wishart, and a separation strategy as possible priors for the covariance matrix. We evaluate these priors through a simulation study and application to a real data set. Generally all priors work well with the exception of the inverse Wishart when the true variance is small relative to prior mean. In this …

Modeling Sleep And Wake Bouts In Drosophila Melanogaster, Gayla R. Olbricht, V. A. Samaranayake, Sahitya Injamuri, Luyang Wang, Courtney Fiebelman, Matthew S. Thimgan

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

Adequate sleep restores vital processes required for health and well-being; but the function and regulation of sleep is not well understood. Unfortunately, a definition of adequate sleep is unclear. On an hours-long timescale, consolidated and cycling sleep results in better health and performance outcomes. At shorter timescales, older studies report conflicting results regarding the relationship between sleep and wake bout durations. One approach to this problem has been to simply analyze the distribution of bout durations. While informative, this method eliminates the time relationship between bouts, which may be important. Here, we develop a model that describes the relationship between …

Multivariate Statistical Analysis Of Coleoptera Spectral Reflectance, Sarah E.M. Herberger, Bahaman Shafii, Stephen P. Cook, Christopher J. Williams, William J. Price

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

The insect order Coleoptera, commonly known as beetles, comprises 40% of all insects which in turn account for half of all identified animal species alive today. Coleopterans frequently have large elytra (the hardened front wings) that can have a wide range of colors. Spectral reflectance readings from these elytra may be used to uniquely identify coleopteran taxonomic groups. Multiple samples of eleven species of wood boring beetles were selected from the University of Idaho William Barr Entomology Museum. Spectrometer readings for each specimen were then fit to normal distribution mixture models to identify multiple peak reflectance wavelengths. Eighteen prominent peaks …

Response Of Soybean Yield And Yield Components To Phosphorus Fertilization In South Dakota, Adams Kusi Appiah, Rebecca Helget, Yi Xu, Jixiang Wu

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

Increased demand for soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merrill] production for industrial, human, and animal consumption has provided many incentives for farmers and producers to increase their production. In many soils used for soybean production, phosphorus (P) becomes a major limiting factor to soybean growth and grain production. A field experiment was conducted in five locations across Eastern South Dakota in 2013 to study the response of soybean yield and yield components to phosphorus fertilizer applications. The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block (RCB) design with four replications. The treatments consisted of five P levels 0, 20, 40, …

Editor's Preface And Table Of Contents, Weixing Song

Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture

These proceedings contain papers presented in the twenty-sixth annual Kansas State University Conference on Applied Statistics in Agriculture, held in Manhattan, Kansas, April 27 - April 29, 2014.