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Kentucky bluegrass growth curves and nutritive values

    Dataset describes Kentucky bluegrass production and height throughout two growing seasons in a rangeland system in the northern Great Plains. One year of sampling was during a drought year and one year had average precipitation. 2017 was a drought year and 2018 was an average precipitation year. Dataset also includes the nutritive value of Kentucky bluegrass throughout the season. Dataset can be used for modeling or for grazing planning.

    Data From: Habitat type and host grazing regimen influence the soil microbial diversity and communities within potential biting midge larval habitats

      Culicoides biting midges are important vectors of diverse microbes such as viruses, protozoa, and nematodes that cause diseases in wild and domestic animals. To investigate the role of microbial communities in midge larval habitat utilization in the wild, we characterized microbial communities (bacterial, protistan, fungal and metazoan) in soils from disturbed (bison and cattle grazed) and undisturbed (non-grazed) pond and spring potential midge larval habitats. We evaluated the influence of habitat and grazing disturbance and their interaction on microbial communities, diversity, presence of midges, and soil properties.

      Data from USDA ARS High Plains Grasslands Research Station (East Unit) near Cheyenne, WY: Yearling cattle weight gains managed in light, moderate and heavily stocked pastures (1982-2022)

        The USDA-Agricultural Research Service High Plains Grasslands Research Station (HPGRS) is located in Cheyenne, Wyoming, USA. In 1982, a long-term stocking rate study on northern mixed-grass prairie was initiated with season-long (early June to October) grazing. Stocking rates defined as light (35% below NRCS recommended rate, 15 yearlings per 80 ha), moderate (NRCS recommended rate, 4 yearlings per 12ha), and heavy (33% above NRCS recommended rate, 4 yearlings per 9 ha). British- and continental-breed yearling cattle were used throughout the study years. When forage supply was limited due to drought, grazing seasons were shortened or cattle were not grazed for that season. Individual raw data on cattle entry and exit weights are available from 1982 to 2022. No grazing occurred in the years 1989, 2000, and 2002 due to drought conditions. Weight gain outliers (± 2 sd of treatment mean) were removed from the dataset.

        Long Term Ecological Research (LTER), Jornada Basin Data Catalog

          This dataset links to the Jornada data homepage, which links to 153 individual datasets. Those datasets can then be searched based on Title, Keyword, or Investigator. The Jornada Basin Long Term Ecological Research Program (JRN LTER) has been investigating desertification processes since 1982.

          Data on Pregnancy rates, calf weaning weights, and sale prices on the University of Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station’s Gund Ranch from 2008-2020

            The University of Nevada Agricultural Experiment Station’s Gund Ranch near Austin, Nevada is approximately 100,000 acres with grazing by 325 cow-calf pairs. Cows are mostly Angus (80%) and Hereford (20%). Bulls are Angus X Hereford. Calves are mostly Angus with some black baldies. Cattle graze a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) grazing permit from April through July. Calving starts about mid-April. Branding is planned for 90-100 days after birth with bull calves castrated as this time. Privately-owned meadows are grazed July-September with weaning starting on September 15. Cows are grazed on BLM low elevation shrublands and weaned calves are kept in meadows with supplemental hay feeding on the Gund Ranch from October 1st through January 1st. The calves not kept for replacements are gathered and weighed for a total herd weight and shipped approximately the 1st of November. The larger end of the steers and heifers typically range from 475-490 pounds. Around 100 head are loaded onto a semi to achieve a full truckload of 48,000-50,0000 pounds. The smaller end of the steers and heifers are shipped on a second semi load. Weights are decreased with a 2% shrink calculation. In Nevada, there are only two sale barns, so many ranches receive more money by selling semi loads shipped to grazinglands of buyers’ choice. Calves are primarily sold on the internet go through Roundup Cattle Company. In years with drought conditions, calves may not reach the 48,000-50,000 weight limit for a second truck. Thus, the smaller calves can be marketed through a local sale barn at a one of their special calf sales.

            Data from: USDA ARS Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory (NGPRL) legacy livestock production (1916-2016) under various rangeland managements with stocking rate and seeded crested wheatgrass

              Established in 1912, the Northern Great Plains Research Laboratory (NGPRL) is a USDA Agricultural Research Service facility located in Mandan, Morton County, North Dakota. In 1916, NGPRL scientists established a long-term rangeland management research project focusing on developing the most appropriate stocking rates for rangelands in the region. The research project ran for 100 years and included pasture 62, a heavily stocked pasture, and 66, a moderately stocked pasture for the entire time. Also, in 1931, pasture 37 was converted from smooth bromegrass to crested wheatgrass, which was both lightly and moderately stocked. The legacy livestock production data from these pastures include 100 years (1916-2016) of livestock production data from pastures 62 and 66 and 84 years (1932-2016) from pasture 37.

              Data from: Vegetation index-based partitioning of evapotranspiration is deficient in grazed systems

                The dataset includes 30 minutes values of partitioned evaporation (E) and transpiration (T), T:ET ratios, and other ancillary datasets for three ET partitioning methods viz. Flux Variance Similarity (FVS) method, Transpiration Estimation Algorithm (TEA), and Underlying Water Use Efficiency (uWUE) method for the three wheat sites. The dataset also contains remote sensing-derived Enhanced Vegetation Index (EVI) data for each site.