It is unevenly distributed within the pasture

and often accumulates at feeding, rest and water places (König 2002; Owens et al. 2003). This results in further differentiation in sward structure and soil conditions. In the process of grazing and excretion, a decoupling of major plant nutrients takes place. Usually, more K is excreted in urine than in dung (Whitehead 2000); while GSK458 mw P is mainly excreted in dung. A certain amount of N is excreted with dung, the rest with urine (e.g. Schellberg et al. 2007). Thus, the more N cattle take up, the higher the ratio of N in urine versus N in dung (Whitehead 1995). On urine patches, legumes are especially negatively affected. White clover competes only poorly for mineral N with grasses and is more susceptible to scorch. N2 fixation can be markedly depressed in the urine patch (Ball et al. 1979;

LY411575 nmr Ledgard et al. 2001). Therefore, urine patches become grass dominated (Ledgard et al. 1982), but the degree of clover reduction and N2 fixation is dependent on the time of urine application as well as the clover content of the sward (Ball et al. 1979; Ledgard et al. 1982). Thus, Norman and Green (1958) did not find an effect of a single urine application on the botanical composition of a pasture. Dung patches may lead to an increase in the total yield of grasses around the pats (MacDiarmid and Watkin 1971; Norman and Green 1958). This effect was shown to be stronger when the excretion was combined with defoliation. Underneath the cow pat, the vegetation died (MacDiarmid JIB04 in vivo and Watkin 1971). Dung patches were found to decrease species turnover and thus have a stabilizing effect on plant composition in their direct surroundings in mountain pastures (Gillet et al. 2010). Grazing management and

diversity The development of a specific sward structure is induced by the behaviour of the grazing animal as discussed above and by agricultural management (pasture maintenance) on a background of site characteristics. Important with respect to grazing management is the grazing intensity, grazing selleck inhibitor system and the type and breed of grazing animal. The effects of grazing are further modified and partly determined by the level of nutrient input (fertilization; additional feeding), and the intensity of intermittent management like cutting or topping, rolling and harrowing, usually intended to decrease grazing effects. However, these secondary management effects will not be considered in more depth here. High grazing intensity has often been blamed for negative effects on diversity (Dumont et al. 2009; Henle et al. 2008; Plantureux et al. 2005; Vallentine 2001). With increasing intensity, animals become less selective in the choice of their diet in order to obtain sufficient intake (Dumont et al. 2007). Thus, defoliation will be more homogeneous than on less intensively grazed paddocks, creating less diverse niches.