Agriculture Commons^™

Carnarvon Rangelands Biosecurity Association Inc. Annual Report 2018/19, Carnarvon Rangelands Biosecurity Association Inc.

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

The CRBA is a not for profit association formed under the Associations Incorporation Act 2015, providing declared pest control services for land managers throughout Shark Bay, Carnarvon, Exmouth, Murchison and Upper Gascoyne Shires. The associations’ primary purpose is the control of declared pests using funding from Declared Pest Rates paid by landholders on pastoral stations. These Declared Pest Rates funds are matched dollar for dollar by the WA Government to reflect the public benefit of controlling declared pest animals and weeds. The association is formally recognised by the Hon Minister for Agriculture and Food as a recognised biosecurity group (RBG).

Central Wheatbelt Biosecurity Association Inc. Annual Report 2018/19, Central Wheatbelt Biosecurity Association Inc.

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

The past 12 months have been a very productive year for the CWBA. Many changes and challenges have occurred, none more so for landowners/occupiers, than the introduction of the “Declared Pest Rate’ (DPR). Generally, the pest rate has been accepted well, with most understanding the importance of an effective control of Declared Pests. While it is not a perfect solution, given that external funding sources have all but expired, and after much deliberation by the board, it is considered to be the fairest method we could use to ensure the ongoing operation of the group. The Board and EO will …

Eastern Wheatbelt Biosecurity Group Inc. Annual Report 2018/19, Eastern Wheatbelt Biosecurity Group Inc.

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

The past 12 months has seen the Eastern Wheatbelt Biosecurity Group keep up the momentum of the past few years and contribute considerably to the betterment of the state’s landholders in controlling predominately wild dogs. With landholders funding the biosecurity groups under the BAM Act through a declared pest rate it is pleasing to note that this money is hitting the ground and making a real and tangible difference through the work of the Licensed Pest Management Technicians employed by the EWBG.

Kimberley Rangelands Biosecurity Association Invasive Species Annual Report 2018/19, Kimberley Rangelands Biosecurity Association

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

The Kimberley Rangelands Biosecurity Association (KRBA) has an annual Large Feral Herbivore culling program that includes feral donkeys, horses and camels with other animals such as water buffalo and pigs targeted when located. The program focusses primarily on donkeys, using the radio telemetry technique with horses and camels culled opportunistically during tracking. Currently there are approximately 90 active collars throughout the region.

Meekatharra Rangelands Biosecurity Association Inc. Annual Report 2018/19, Meekatharra Rangelands Biosecurity Association Inc.

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

The Meekatharra Rangelands Biosecurity Association Inc (MRBA) is an industry body with a membership of all pastoralists in the Shires of Yalgoo, Mount Magnet, Cue and Meekatharra. The Association is established under the Biosecurity and Agriculture Management Act 2007 with a charter to manage and control declared pests, both animal and plant.

Peel Harvey Biosecurity Group Annual Report 2018/19, Peel Harvey Biosecurity Group

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

2019 has been a great time for the team at the Peel Harvey Biosecurity Group (PHBG) achieving many things to help sustain the group into the future and ensure that people in the community are aware of their pest control obligations. The team have been working very cohesively ensuring the biggest bang for every dollar is achieved. The community as a whole is understanding that the group is not the one to do the work, or be the compliance enforcer, but rather is the educator supplying guidance and resources to landholders. These resources form an asset base that belongs to …

Pilbara Regional Biosecurity Group Inc. Annual Report 2018/19, Pilbara Regional Biosecurity Group

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

The Pilbara RBG is a not for profit association formed under the Associations Incorporation Act 2015, providing declared pest control programs for land managers, particularly in the pastoral zone. The associations’ primary purpose is the control of declared pests using funding from Declared Pest Rates paid by landholders on pastoral stations. These Declared Pest Rates funds are matched dollar for dollar by the WA Government to reflect the public benefit of controlling declared pest animals and weeds. The association is formally recognised by the Hon Minister for Agriculture and Food as a recognised biosecurity group (RBG).

Southern Biosecurity Group Annual Report 2018/19, Southern Biosecurity Group

Recognised Biosecurity Group Annual Reports

Southern Biosecurity Group is a subgroup of the Ravensthorpe Agricultural Initiative Network (RAIN) with the mandate to coordinate control of declared pest species in the Shire of Ravensthorpe. We first began operating in 2002 as the Ravensthorpe Declared Species Group. At that time, our role involved coordinating wild dog control in the shire. We achieved good control of wild dog numbers through a range of activities including dispersing of 1080 baits, trapping and shooting.

Greater Sage-Grouse Translocations: The Science Behind Utah's Conservation Policy, Michel Kohl, Melissa Chelak, Terry Messmer

All Current Publications

This fact sheet discusses the history of translocating greater sage-grouse in Utah. This includes information on protocols, success rates, and genetic implications.

Landscaping For Season Long Color, Jaydee Gunnell, Sheriden M. Hansen, Linden Greenhalgh, Holly Christley

All Current Publications

This fact sheet describes plants that can give landscapes color all season long with blooms in spring, summer, fall and winter interests. It includes a listing of trees, shrubs, perennials, vines, ground covers, bulbs, and ornamental grasses.

Minimizing Regrowth When Removing Russia Olive = Points To Consider, Dennis Worwood, Ron Patterson, Steve Price

All Current Publications

This fact sheet provides the results of a variety of trials conducted to gain a greater understanding of the patterns of Russian olive regrowth and determine management practices that reduce the regrowth potential of mechanically-removed Russian olive.

Flue Gas Desulfurization Gypsum As Soil Amendment, Dinesh Panday, Richard Ferguson, Bijesh Maharjan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Flue gas desulfurization (FGD) gypsum is one of the by-products of a coal-fired power generation plant. Coal is the world’s most abundant and widely distributed fossil fuel. After natural gas, coal is the second primary source of energy to generate electricity globally (more than 25%) and remains a key component of the fuel mix for power generation to meet electricity demand in most of the developing countries. The U.S., China and India are the top coal producers and consumers (for production of electricity from coal sources) in the world (OECD/IEA, 2014; IEA, 2016). However, in the U.S., its contribution to …

A Key Variant In The Cis-Regulatory Element Of Flowering Gene Ghd8 Associated With Cold Tolerance In Rice, Peng Wang, Yin Xiong, Rong Gong, Ying Yang, Kai Fan, Sibin Yu

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Variations in the gene promoter play critical roles in the evolution of important adaptive traits in crops, but direct links of the regulatory mutation to the adaptive change are not well understood. Here, we examine the nucleotide variations in the promoter region of a transcription factor (Ghd8) that control grain number, plant height and heading date in rice. We find that a dominant promoter type of subspecies japonica displayed a high activity for Ghd8 expression in comparison with the one in indica. Transgenic analyses revealed that higher expression levels of Ghd8 delayed heading date and enhanced cold …

A Tmeff2-Regulated Cell Cycle Derived Gene Signature Is Prognostic Of Recurrence Risk In Prostate Cancer, Constantin Georgescu, Joshua M. Corbin, Sandra Thibivilliers, Zachary D. Webb, Yan D. Zhao, Jan Koster, Kar-Ming Fung, Adam S. Asch, Jonathan D. Wren, Maria J. Ruiz-Echevarria

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Background: The clinical behavior of prostate cancer (PCa) is variable, and while the majority of cases remain indolent, 10% of patients progress to deadly forms of the disease. Current clinical predictors used at the time of diagnosis have limitations to accurately establish progression risk. Here we describe the development of a tumor suppressor regulated, cell-cycle gene expression based prognostic signature for PCa, and validate its independent contribution to risk stratification in several radical prostatectomy (RP) patient cohorts.

Methods: We used RNA interference experiments in PCa cell lines to identify a gene expression based gene signature associated with Tmeff2, an …

Genome-Wide Association Study For Multiple Biotic Stress Resistance In Synthetic Hexaploid Wheat, Madhav Bhatta, Alexey Morgounov, Vikas Belamkar, Stephen N. Wegulo, Abdelfattah A. Dababat, Gul Erginbas-Orakci, Mustapha El Bouhssini, Pravin Gautam, Jesse Poland, Nilufer Akci, Lutfu Demir, Ruth Wanyera, P. Stephen Baenziger

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Genetic resistance against biotic stress is a major goal in many wheat breeding programs. However, modern wheat cultivars have a limited genetic variation for disease and pest resistance and there is always a possibility of the evolution of new diseases and pests to overcome previously identified resistance genes. A total of 125 synthetic hexaploid wheats (SHWs; 2n = 6x = 42, AABBDD, Triticum aestivum L.) were characterized for resistance to fungal pathogens that cause wheat rusts (leaf; Puccinia triticina, stem; P. graminis f.sp. tritici, and stripe; P. striiformis f.sp. tritici) and crown rot (Fusarium spp.); …

Context-Specific Genomic Selection Strategies Outperform Phenotypic Selection For Soybean Quantitative Traits In The Progeny Row Stage, Christopher J. Smallwood, Arnold M. Saxton, Jason D. Gillman, Hem S. Bhandari, Phillip A. Wadl, Benjamin D. Fallen, David L. Hyten, Qijian Song, Vincent R. Pantalone

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Evaluating different breeding selection strategies for relative utility is necessary to choose those that maximize efficiency. Soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] seed yield and fatty acid, protein, and oil contents are all commercially important traits that display complex quantitative inheritance. A soybean population consisting of 860 F₅–derived recombinant inbred lines (RILs), genotyped with 4867 polymorphic single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) was used to compare phenotypic and context specific genomic selection (GS) strategies. To simulate progeny rows, each RIL was grown in a single plot in 2010 in Knoxville, TN, and phenotype was recorded. A subset of 276 RILs …

United States Midwest Soil And Weather Conditions Influence Anaerobic Potentially Mineralizable Nitrogen, Jason D. Clark, Kristen S. Veum, Fabian G. Fernandez, James J. Camberato, Paul R. Carter, Richard B. Ferguson, David W. Franzen, Daniel E. Kaiser, Newell R. Kitchen, Carrie A. M. Laboski, Emerson D. Nafziger, Carl J. Rosen, John E. Sawyer, John F. Shanahan

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Nitrogen provided to crops through mineralization is an important factor in N management guidelines. Understanding of the interactive effects of soil and weather conditions on N mineralization needs to be improved. Relationships between anaerobic potentially mineralizable N (PMN_an) and soil and weather conditions were evaluated under the contrasting climates of eight US Midwestern states. Soil was sampled (0–30 cm) for PMN_an analysis before pre-plant N application (PP_0N) and at the V5 development stage from the pre-plant 0 (V5_0N) and 180 kg N ha−1 (V5_180N) rates and incubated for 7, 14, and …

Soil Fauna Accelerate Dung Pat Decomposition And Nutrient Cycling Into Grassland Soil, Kenneth S. Evans, Martha Mamo, Ana Wingeyer, Walter Schacht, Kent Eskridge, Jeff Bradshaw, Daniel Ginting

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Soil fauna play critical roles in various ecosystem functions and services, but empirical data measuring their impact on dung pat decomposition and subsequent nutrient cycling into rangeland soils are limited. The objective of this study was to quantify the effect of soil fauna, using dung beetle as an indicator, on dung decomposition and subsequent translocation of dung nutrients into grassland soil over time. A field experiment was conducted early in the summer season and late in the summer season of 2014 and 2015. In each season, dung beetle abundance, changes in dung properties, and subsequent translocation of dung nutrients into …

The Mitochondrial Genome Of Eleusine Indica And Characterization Of Gene Content Within Poaceae, Nathan D. Hall, Hui Zhang, Jeffrey P. Mower, Joseph Scott Mcelroy, Leslie R. Goertzen

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Plant mitochondrial (mt) genome assembly provides baseline data on size, structure, and gene content, but resolving the sequence of these large and complex organelle genomes remains challenging due to fragmentation, frequent recombination, and transfers of DNA from neighboring plastids. Themt genome for Eleusine indica (Poaceae: goosegrass) is comprehensibly analyzed here, providing key reference data for an economically significant invasive species that is also the maternal parent of the allotetraploid crop Finger millet (Eleusine coracana). The assembled E. indica genome contains 33 protein coding genes, 6 rRNA subunits, 24 tRNA, 8 large repetitive regions 15 kb of transposable elements across a …

Spatial Associations Of Livestock Guardian Dogs And Domestic Sheep, Julie Young, John P. Draper, Daniel Kinka

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Livestock guardian dogs (Canis lupus familiaris; LGDs) have been used for centuries to protect livestock, primarily domestic sheep (Ovis aries), from depredation by large carnivores. While previous studies have shown their efficacy, the mechanisms in which LGDs protect livestock have largely remained unstudied. Livestock guardian dogs are often considered to be effective only if they remain in spatial proximity to the livestock they are protecting. We determined space use of LGDs relative to domestic sheep on open-range grazing allotments used by working ranches in the Rocky Mountains area of the northwest United States between August 2012 …

Control Efforts And Serologic Survey Of Pseudorabies And Brucellosis In Wild Pigs Of Tennessee, Lisa I. Muller, Neelam C. Poudyal, Roger Applegate, Chuck Yoest

Human–Wildlife Interactions

European wild pigs (Sus scrofa) are an introduced invasive species that now constitute a major threat to agriculture and the natural ecology of the environments they now inhabit. Wild pigs also carry many diseases known to infect wildlife, humans, and livestock. Two of these diseases, pseudorabies (PRV) and brucellosis, constitute major diseases in the United States. Better data are needed regarding the prevalence of these diseases in wild pigs to understand and manage the potential risks to wildlife, humans, and livestock. From July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2017, Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency personnel trapped and euthanized 4,727 …

A Review Of Rat Lungworm Infection And Recent Data On Its Definitive Hosts In Hawaii, Chris N. Niebuhr, Susan I. Jarvi, Shane R. Siers

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a zoonotic nematode that causes rat lungworm disease (angiostrongyliasis), a potentially debilitating form of meningitis, in humans worldwide. The definitive hosts for rat lungworm are primarily members of the genus Rattus, with gastropods as intermediate hosts. This parasite has emerged as an important public health concern in the United States, especially in Hawaii, where the number of human cases has increased in the last decade. Here we discuss the current knowledge of the rat lungworm, including information on the life cycle and host species, as well as updates on known infection levels. Three …

Effects Of Potassium Source And Rate On Yield, Quality, And Leaf Chemistry Of Dark And Burley Tobacco, And Residual Effects Of Soil K Levels, Andrea Brooke Keeney

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Field trials were conducted in 2016, 2017 and 2018 with dark fire-cured, dark air-cured, and burley tobacco at Princeton, Murray and Lexington Kentucky. Tobacco variety used in 2016 was a low converter (LC) variety, varieties used in 2017 and 2018 were LC and higher converter (HC) varieties. Potassium sources used at all locations and in all years were potassium sulfate (K₂SO₄) and potassium chloride (KCl). Application rates used at all locations and in all years were 93, 186, 279 kg K ha^-1along with an untreated control that received no potassium. In all trials, tobacco …

Integrating Cover Crops And Herbicides For Horseweed [Conyza Canadensis (L.) Cronq.] Management Prior To Soybean [Glycine Max (L.) Merr.], Austin Sherman

Theses and Dissertations--Plant and Soil Sciences

Horseweed (Conyza canadensis (L.) Cronq.) is prevalent in Kentucky and can be difficult to control. Research has shown multiple weed control methods to be more sustainable than relying on chemical control alone, so the use of multiple methods for horseweed management was examined in this study. The main objective was to determine best practice(s) to reduce horseweed prior to soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.]. Treatments included: fall-planted cover crop [CC; cereal rye (Secale cereale L.) or none], fall-applied herbicide (saflufenacil or none), and spring-applied herbicides (dicamba, 2,4-D ester, or none). We hypothesized horseweed densities would be reduced …

Identification Of Sero-Diagnostic Antigens For The Early Diagnosis Of Johne’S Disease Using Map Protein Microarrays, Lingling Li, J. P. Bannantine, Joseph J. Campo, Arlo Randall, Yrjo T. Grohn, Megan A. Schilling, Robab Katani, Jessica Radzio-Basu, Laurel Easterling, Vivek Kapur

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Considerable effort has been directed toward controlling Johne’s disease (JD), a chronic granulomatous intestinal inflammatory disease caused by Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP) in cattle and other ruminants. However, progress in controlling the spread of MAP infection has been impeded by the lack of reliable diagnostic tests that can identify animals early in the infection process and help break the transmission chain. To identify reliable antigens for early diagnosis of MAP infection, we constructed a MAP protein array with 868 purified recombinant MAP proteins, and screened a total of 180 well-characterized serum samples from cows assigned to 4 groups based …

Quantification Of Macrophages And Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis In Bovine Intestinal Tissue During Different Stages Of Johne’S Disease, Caitlin J. Jenvey, Jesse M. Hostetter, Adrienne L. Shircliff, John Bannantine, Judith R. Stabel

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Johne’s disease is an enteric disease caused by the intracellular pathogen Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis (MAP). Upon ingestion of MAP, it is translocated across the intestinal epithelium and may be killed by intestinal macrophages, or depending on the bacterial burden and immunological status of the animal, MAP may thwart innate defense mechanisms and persist within the macrophage. This study aimed to determine the numbers of macrophages and MAP present in bovine midileal tissue during different stages of infection. Immunofluorescent (IF) labeling was performed on frozen bovine midileal intestinal tissue collected from 28 Holstein dairy cows. The number of macrophages in …

Wolves: A Primer For Ranchers, John Williams, Douglas E. Johnson, Patrick E. Clark, Larry L. Larson, Tyanne J. Roland

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Ranch management has become more complex since wolves were reintroduced into Idaho and Wyoming in 1996. In wolf areas, livestock have experienced increased death loss and greater stress. Increased livestock aggressiveness has been observed, especially toward working dogs, making handling livestock more difficult. Additionally ranchers have reported a loss of body condition, lower conception rates, increased time and expense for management. Our study was designed to investigate the effect of wolf presence on cattle behavior, landscape use patterns, and resource selection by comparing high wolf density areas against low wolf density areas. This study also generated baseline information on cattle …

Optimized Light Sources For Enhancing Color Discrimination In People With Low Vision, Anukul Radsamrong

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

This research was divided into 2 parts. The aim of the first part was to investigate if illuminance level and correlated color temperature (CCT) had an effect on mobility performance in people with low vision compared to the elderly wearing simulated low vision glasses and the elderly with naked eyes. We also compared their mobility in pouring liquid to a specified level. The second part’s aim was to optimize combinations of light emitting diode (LED) channels that increased the discrimination of color in people with low vision. The research procedure of the first part involved 7 lighting conditions, with different …

Unmanned Aerial System And Satellite-Based High Resolution Imagery For High-Throughput Phenotyping In Dry Bean, Sindhu Sankaran, Juan José Quirós, Phillip N. Miklas

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Dry bean breeding programs are crucial to improve the productivity and resistance to biotic and abiotic stress. Phenotyping is a key process in breeding that refers to crop trait evaluation. In recent years, high-throughput plant phenotyping methods are being developed to increase the accuracy and efficiency for crop trait evaluations. In this study, aerial imagery at different resolutions were evaluated to phenotype crop performance and phenological traits using genotypes from two breeding panels, Durango Diversity Panel (DDP) and Andean Diversity Panel (ADP). The unmanned aerial system (UAS) based multispectral and thermal data were collected for two seasons at multiple time …

Divergent Antigen-Specific Cellular Immune Responses During Asymptomatic Subclinical And Clinical States Of Disease In Cows Naturally Infected With Mycobacterium Avium Subsp. Paratuberculosis, Judith R. Stabel, J. P. Bannantine

United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service / University of Nebraska-Lincoln: Faculty Publications

Infection of the host with Mycobacterium avium subsp. paratuberculosis results in chronic and progressive enteritis that traverses both subclinical and clinical stages. The mechanism(s) for the shift from an asymptomatic subclinical disease state to advanced clinical disease is not fully understood. In the present study, naturally infected dairy cattle were divided into subclinical and clinical infection groups, along with noninfected control cows of similar parity, to study host immune responses in different stages of infection. Both infection groups had higher levels of secretion of gamma interferon (IFN-􏰇), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-􏰈), and interleukin-2 (IL-2) than control cows, whereas only clinical …