@article {JRN55427,
	title = {Adapting to climate change on desert rangelands: A multi-site comparison of grazing behavior plasticity of heritage and improved beef cattle},
	journal = {Journal of Arid Environments},
	volume = {209},
	year = {2022},
	month = {11/02/2022},
	pages = {104886},
	abstract = {Climate change is amplifying the spatiotemporal heterogeneity of desert rangeland forages through its impact on precipitation variability. Foraging behavior plasticity (an animal{\textquoteright}s ability to alter its behavior to cope with environmental variation) could be a key trait for climate adaptation of beef cattle in arid environments. We analyzed GPS-derived movement and activity data of Criollo and commercial beef cattle from eight studies conducted at sites in North and South America to determine whether seasonal and year-to-year behavior plasticity varied significantly between breeds. We calculated dormant/brown season or driest year percent change in foraging behavior relative to growing/green season or wettest year. Compared to commercial beef breeds, Criollo cattle exhibited significantly greater seasonal adjustment in daily distance traveled (20\% increase vs. 2\% decrease, P <= 0.02) and daily grazing effort (25\% vs. 1.5\% increase, P = 0.01) during the dormant/brown vs. growing/green season. Increase in daily area explored during the dormant/brown season was almost three times greater in Criollo vs. commercial beef cattle (P = 0.09). Seasonal adjustment in daily time spent grazing was similar for Criollo and commercial beef breeds. Increase in daily area explored during the dormant/brown season of dry vs. wet years was three times greater for Criollo vs. commercial beef breeds (P = 0.03). Criollo cattle tended (P = 0.09) to exhibit greater behavior adjustment than commercial beef counterparts in daily distance traveled during the dormant/brown season of dry vs. wet years (22\% vs. 4\% increase, respectively). No breed differences in adjustment of time spent grazing (P = 0.36) or grazing effort (P = 0.20) during dormant/brown season of dry vs. wet years were observed. Dry vs. wet year grazing behavior adjustments during the growing/green season were similar for both breeds. Grazing behavior plasticity observed in Criollo cows could be a critical trait for desert beef herds in the face of increasingly variable rainfall patterns occurring as a result of climate change.},
	keywords = {Animal agriculture, British beef cattle, Cow-calf, criollo cattle, GPS tracking, ranching},
	doi = {10.1016/j.jaridenv.2022.104886},
	url = {files/bibliography/22-024.pdf},
	author = {Andr{\'e}s F. Cibils and Richard E. Estell and S. Spiegal and Shelemia Nyamuryekung{\textquoteright}e and Matthew M. McIntosh and Danielle Duni and Oscar A. Herrera Conegliano and Felipe A. Rodr{\'\i}g Almeida and Octavio Roacho Estrada and Lisandro J. Blanco and Danielle Duni and S. A. Utsumi and Alfredo L. Gonzalez}
}
