Figure 1
Fluctuatios in ambient temperature (a) and relative humidity (b) inside the animals pen during the hot-dry and harmattan seasons.
Figure 2
Effects of harmattan (a) and hot-dry (b) seasons on daily rhythms of rectal temperature in sheep and goats. Notes: Each data point represents the mean ± SEM of 20 animals at each period of measurements. Rectal temperature was clearly low during the scotophase and rises during the photophase, especially during the harmattan season. The horizontal bars denote the dark and light phases of the prevailing light-dark cycle. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.
Table 1
Characteristics of rectal temperature and body surface temperature daily rhythms in sheep and goats under natural dark:light circle during the harmattan and hot-dry seasons. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.
| Harmattan Season | Hot-dry Season | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goat (n=20) | Sheep (n=20) | Goat (n=20) | Sheep (n=20) | |
| Mesor (°C): | ||||
| Rectal temperature | 38.8 ± 0.2a | 38.2 ± 0.3b | 38.8 ± 0.5a | 38.7 ± 0.4a |
| Inter-digital space | 22.7 ± 0.4a | 22.0 ± 0.2a | 27.4 ± 0.1b | 26.5 ± 0.5b |
| Coronary band | 22.5 ± 0.4a | 21.4 ± 0.5a | 27.6 ± 0.2b | 26.1 ± 0.4b |
| Nose | 24.1 ± 0.2a | 23.4 ± 0.4a | 29.0 ± 0.4b | 28.7 ± 0.5b |
| Head | 27.7 ± 0.3a | 26.1 ± 0.2b | 31.2 ± 0.5c | 30.8 ± 0.2c |
| Ear | 27.2 ± 0.2a | 25.0 ± 0.5b | 30.7 ± 0.4c | 30.7 ± 0.4c |
| Amplitude (°C): | ||||
| Rectal temperature | 0.85 ± 0.02a | 1.20 ± 0.05b | 0.55 ± 0.01c | 0.45 ± 0.04c |
| Inter-digital space | 5.60 ± 0.10a | 6.35 ± 0.20b | 4.51 ± 0.10c | 3.01 ± 0.02d |
| Coronary band | 4.60 ± 0.01a | 3.50 ± 0.04b | 4.50 ± 0.07a | 3.50 ± 0.04b |
| Nose | 7.15 ± 0.20a | 6.65 ± 0.08b | 5.30 ± 0.01c | 4.10 ± 0.02d |
| Head | 5.65 ± 0.08a | 5.25 ±0.04a | 4.90 ± 0.02b | 4.80 ± 0.06b |
| Ear | 7.00 ± 0.21a | 6.00 ± 0.11b | 5.50 ± 0.05c | 5.00 ± 0.05c |
| Acrophase (h): | ||||
| Rectal temperature | 17:30 ± 0.14a | 20:30 ± 0.10b | 18:00 ± 0.12c | 18:00 ± 0.14c |
| Inter-digital space | 17:30 ± 0.20a | 17:30 ± 0.11a | 11:30 ± 0.10b | 11:30 ± 0.10b |
| Coronary band | 17:30 ± 0.25a | 17:30 ± 0.10a | 11:30 ± 0.11b | 11:30 ± 0.10b |
| Nose | 17:30 ± 0.15a | 17:30 ± 0.14a | 11:30 ± 0.10b | 11:30 ± 0.10b |
| Head | 17:30 ± 0.15a | 14:30 ± 0.15b | 11:30 ± 0.10c | 11:30 ± 0.11c |
| Ear | 17:30 ± 0.14a | 14:30 ± 0.12b | 11:30 ± 0.11c | 11:30 ± 0.12c |
| Robustness (%) | ||||
| Rectal temperature | 69 ± 10.5a | 54 ± 12.7b | 71 ± 15.2a | 58 ± 10.5b |
| Inter-digital space | 60 ± 9.5a | 52 ± 11.5a | 61 ± 8.7a | 58 ± 11.2a |
| Coronary band | 59 ± 10.0a | 55 ± 9.5a | 60 ± 10.2a | 60 ± 7.5a |
| Nose | 54 ± 7.8a | 44 ± 8.6a | 50 ± 9.5a | 48 ± 10.0a |
| Head | 52 ± 8.5a | 50 ± 9.2a | 60 ± 10.5a | 55 ± 11.4a |
| Ear | 60 ± 12.4a | 58 ± 10.2a | 62 ± 8.9a | 58 ± 7.3a |
[i] Notes: Mean values with different superscript letters along the same row are significantly different at p < 0.05.
Figure 3
Effects of harmattan (a) and hot-dry (b) seasons on daily rhythms of inter-digital temperature in sheep and goats. Notes: Each data point represents the mean ± SEM of 20 animals at each period of measurements. Inter-digital temperature was clearly low during the scotophase and rises during the photophase, especially during the harmattan season. The horizontal bars denote the dark and light phases of the prevailing light-dark cycle. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.
Figure 4
Effects of harmattan (a) and hot-dry (b) seasons on daily rhythms of coronary band temperature in sheep and goats. Notes: Each data point represents the mean ± SEM of 20 animals at each period of measurements. Coronary band temperature was clearly low during the scotophase and rises during the photophase, especially during the harmattan season. The horizontal bars denote the dark and light phases of the prevailing light-dark cycle. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.
Figure 5
Effects of harmattan (a) and hot-dry (b) seasons on daily rhythms of nose temperature in sheep and goats. Notes: Each data point represents the mean ± SEM of 20 animals at each period of measurements. Nose temperature was clearly low during the scotophase and rises during the photophase, especially during the harmattan season. The horizontal bars denote the dark and light phases of the prevailing light-dark cycle. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.
Figure 6
Effects of harmattan (a) and hot-dry (b) seasons on daily rhythms of head temperature in sheep and goats. Notes: Each data point represents the mean ± SEM of 20 animals at each period of measurements. Head temperature was clearly low during the scotophase and rises during the photophase, especially during the harmattan season. The horizontal bars denote the dark and light phases of the prevailing light-dark cycle. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.
Figure 7
Effects of harmattan (a) and hot-dry (b) seasons on daily rhythms of ear temperature in sheep and goats. Notes: Each data point represents the mean ± SEM of 20 animals at each period of measurements. Ear temperature was clearly low during the scotophase and rises during the photophase, especially during the harmattan season. The horizontal bars denote the dark and light phases of the prevailing light-dark cycle. For each season measurements were made twice on separate dates at 3-h intervals for a period of 2 days.