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U. S. Department of Agriculture, Brooksville, FL, 33512, Miles City, MT, 59301 and Knoxville, TN, 37616; Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, Gainesville, 32611 and Montana Agricultural Experiment Station, Bozeman 59717
Abstract
The birth and weaning performance of different lines of Hereford cattle were compared in the dissimilar climates of Brooksville, FL, and Miles City, MT, from 1961 through 1975. During phase 1 of the study, two unrelated lines (F6 and M1) previously developed at the two respective stations were compared over an 11-year period following a reciprocal exchange of cattle. Concurrently, a Florida derivative of M1 cattle (F4) was selected for performance in Florida; thus, a later comparison of related lines (F4 and M1) developed at the two locations (phase 2 of the study) was made possible. Traits of primary interest included birth weight, daily gain from birth to weaning, estimated 205-day weight, body length, condition score and annual production per cow.
Location effects differed with lines. In the Montana origin lines (M1 and F4), there was a significant advantage for the Montana location for all traits except condition score which was identical at the two locations. In line F6 there was a slight advantage for the Florida location for all traits except birth weight which was 5.2 kg heavier in Montana.
Line by location interactions were highly significant for all traits during both phases of the study. When results over the two phases were pooled, advantages for the local over introduced groups were 1.2 kg for birth weight, 58 g for daily gain, 13 kg for 205-day weight, 2.1 cm for body length, .5 units for condition score and 24.8 kg for annual production per cow. These results agree with previous indications from this study that genetic adaptation to the local environment is important in commercial beef cattle production and merits serious consideration in performance testing procedures, interregional exchange of seedstock and sources of semen used for artificial insemination.
1 This research was conducted as an interregional effort by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, Science and Education Administration, Agricultural Research, and the State Agricultural Experiment Stations of Florida and Montana. The cattle were located at the Brooksville Beef Cattle Research Station, Brooksville,FL, and the Range and Livestock Experiment Station, Miles City, MT, under Regional Projects S-10 and WRCC-1. Published as Florida Agricultural Experiment Station Journal Series No. 1212.
2 USDA, SEA-AR, Brooksville Beef Cattle Research Station, Brooksville, FL 33512.
3 Florida Agricultural Experiment Station, Gainesville 32611.
4 USDA, SEA-AR, University of Tennessee, Knoxville 37916.
5 USDA, SEA-AR, Livestock and Range Research Station, Miles City, MT 59301.
6 Montana Agricultural Experiment Station, Bozeman 59717.
7 Appreciation is expressed to J. S. Brinks, N. M. Kieffer, R. S. Temple, E. J. Warwick and F. S. Wilson for contributions at the beginning of the project and to B. W. Knapp and J. J. Urick for data collection and livestock management.
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