Using Geometric Morphometrics to Quantify Variation of Shape and Magnitude of the Pattern of Milk Production of Dairy Cattle - Open Access Library Journal

OALibJ > Vol.3 No.9, September 2016

Using Geometric Morphometrics to Quantify Variation of Shape and Magnitude of the Pattern of Milk Production of Dairy Cattle ()

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DOI: 10.4236/oalib.1102928 1,117 Downloads 2,467 Views Citations

Author(s)

Ángel Amed Durón-Benítez, Wen-Chi Huang^*

Affiliation(s)

Graduate Institute of Agribusiness Management, National Pingtung University of Science and Technology (NPUST), Pingtung.

ABSTRACT

Magnitude and the production pattern (or shape) of milk produced by dairy cattle are determined by the physiological process of the mammary gland. The production pattern or shape, projected surface on a plane by graphical representation and which can be regarded as a biological form, lacks its appropriate description. We developed the application of the relatively new geometric morphometrics method, which visualizes, measures, and tests differences in the form of biological shapes. We applied the landmark-based geometric morphometrics technique to quantify variation of magnitude and the shape projected on plane by graphical depiction representing the relationship between milk yield and time. We used a free software and small dataset of milk production, monthly time series data from 2007 to 2015, of two leading dairy industries: New Zealand and United States. The results of the analysis showed production patterns of cardioid shape in New Zealand and heart shape in United States. Those forms varied in size and shape within and between countries, and only shape within country were statistically non-significant. The landmark-based geometric morphometric is effective to quantify variation of the shape of the milk production pattern under different setting. This may not only complement the analysis of milk prediction, but also reveal profound information about the biological process represented through the shape, by allowing the control of co-variation with other variables.

KEYWORDS

Lactation Curve, Orbital Graph, Geometric Morphometrics, Cardioid Shape, Heart Shape, New Zealand, United States, Time Series Data

Share and Cite:

Durón-Benítez, Á. and Huang, W. (2016) Using Geometric Morphometrics to Quantify Variation of Shape and Magnitude of the Pattern of Milk Production of Dairy Cattle. Open Access Library Journal, 3, 1-19. doi: 10.4236/oalib.1102928.

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