Livestock is an integral part of agriculture and contribute significantly in the economy of developing countries. A major factor, which affects the performance of livestock, is its environment. Any deviation in the surroundings, for example, a change in air temperature, humidity, air movement, solar radiation and precipitation has a pronounced effect on the quantity and quality of forage, thermal comfort and performance of the animals. To study the effect of global change on the performance of livestock the present project has been designed with the objective to investigate the impacts of global change on the availability and quality of feed and forage, its utilisation, physiological and production performance of livestock in developing countries. The study will comprise of three basic components, 1) the effect of global change on the quality of fodder and forage, 2) its intake and production of CO2 and CH4, and3) the effect of climatic change on physiological norms and the performance of livestock.
Project • 2005-24-NSG