Vaginal temperature as indicative of thermoregulatory response in Nellore heifers under different microclimatic conditions.

The objective was to evaluate vaginal temperature as a thermoregulatory response of Nellore heifers under different microclimatic conditions. The study was conducted during one year in an experimental area located at 54°37'W, 20°27'S, and 530 m of altitude in Brazil. Twenty-four Nellore females were reared in integrated crop-livestock-forestry systems with different shading patterns.

Performance of Nellore heifers, forage mass, and structural and nutritional characteristics of Brachiaria brizantha grass in integrated production systems.

Our objective was to evaluate production, nutritive value and carrying capacity of piatã grass (Brachiaria brizantha cv. BRS Piatã), and performance of Nellore heifers in agrosilvopastoral systems (ASPS) with three eucalyptus (Eucalyptus urograndis) tree densities, during winter, spring, summer, and fall. Three integrated systems were evaluated: ASPS-1 (357 trees ha(-1)), ASPS-2 (227 trees ha(-1)), and CON (5 trees ha(-1)).