Work

Repeatability and genetic parameters for phenotypes of methane emission in crossbred beef × dairy slaughter calves

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: • CH 4 measured using sniffers detect genetic differences in beef× dairy calves. • Accurate breath measurements of CH 4 and CO 2 in industrial settings. • CH4 measured as weekly means reduces residual variance. • CH 4 phenotypes show repeatable and heritable variance in beef × dairy. • Future breeding goals can include selection for lower CH 4 production. Crossbreeding beef sires with dairy cows to produce beef × dairy calves is becoming increasingly common. To incorporate CH 4 reduction into breeding objectives, it is essential to accurately measure related traits and phenotypes in a sufficient number of animals to capture genetic variation. This paper will outline a method for phenotyping CH 4 in growing beef × dairy calves using a sniffer system, while also integrating growth and feed intake data. The objectives of this study were to investigate the repeatability of methane phenotypes measured by a non-intrusive sniffer setup in slaughter calf production, focusing on beef × dairy crossbred calves. Genetic parameters and heritabilities were estimated for the methane phenotypes. The study involved 9113 beef × dairy offspring sired by Danish Blue, Charolais or Angus sires to Holstein dams. An infrared gas sensor was installed in automatic feed intake recorder boxes to measure CH 4 and CO 2 gas concentration during feeding visits. Concentrations of CH 4 and CO 2 over feed box visit time were summarized as the mean, median, mean of peak concentrations observed during eructations, and the total area under the curve. Live weight and feed intake were also recorded to permit calculations of daily methane production. The repeatability of phenotype measurements on a per-visit basis, as well as their daily and weekly means, were analyzed using a genetic sire-dam model. Repeatable variation was found for all traits of CH 4 and CO 2 concentration, and repeatability increased when summarizing phenotypes from visits to daily and weekly means. Summarizing CH 4 and CO 2 concentration by mean across visit showed higher repeatability than alternative methods. Weekly mean concentrations of CH 4 and CO 2 showed the highest repeatability of investigated methods comparable to estimates found using GreenFeed and respiration chambers. Moderate heritabilities of the sire and dam components were found for live weight, dry matter intake, CH 4 concentration, and CO 2 concentration. Daily methane production had a heritability of 0.28 (SE 0.07) for the sire component and 0.18 (SE 0.07) for the dam component when estimated by the ratio between CH 4 and CO 2 concentrations and information on live weight and growth. Genetic correlations did not show significant differences for sire and dam components. The study shows that there is repeatable and heritable variation in methane emission traits in beef × dairy slaughter calves, indicating that this can be included in future breeding goals for beef sires to use in beef × dairy matings.

Source: animal

DOI: 10.1016/j.animal.2025.101478

Authors: K.K. Johansen, M. Kargo, O.F. Christensen, M. Bjerring, P. Løvendahl, A.J. Buitenhuis

Institution: Aarhus University

Language: English

Topic: Genetic and phenotypic traits in livestock

Subfield: Genetics

Field: Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology

Domain: Life Sciences

SDG: Zero hunger

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,000