Abstract
We investigated the selection of residences and feeding sites by cattle in a winter grazing system in northern Tohoku, Japan, in order to control cattle spatial distribution in the system. Forty to sixty Japanese Shorthorn heifers and steers were stocked from November to January on an area comprising two pastures (pasture A (1.1ha), pasture B (1.6ha)) and a forest (1.5ha), under feeding of concentrate and grass silage. Selection by the cattle of three areas (pastures A and B and forest) for both residence and feeding during the daytime and the whole day was correlated negatively with the distance from water and positively with the quantity (supply of concentrate and silage) and quality (TDN) of feeds. Supply of concentrate and feed quality were correlated less strongly with the selection for feeding than the residence (for daytime). The green herbage mass in the pastures and forest was correlated positively with the selection for feeding only. The feeding level of silage showed positive correlations with the selection for residence and feeding in all time zones (daytime, nighttime and whole day). The results demonstrate that animal distribution can be controlled by manipulating feeding sites of stored feed such as silage.
