title: Impact of consuming tall fescue seeds infected with the endophytic fungus, Neotyphodium coenophialum, on reproduction of chickens.
abstract: Most of the 14 million hectares of pastures of tall fescue (Festuca arundinacea) planted in the United States are infected with the endophytic fungus, Neotyphodium coenophialum. I examined whether the consumption of fescue seed infected with this fungus had an adverse impact on reproduction in birds. Chickens were used as the model; they were maintained on a diet of chick starter mixed in equal amounts with either infected fescue seed (fungus-fed chickens) or uninfected fescue seed (control chickens). Consumption of infected fescue seed slowed the growth rates of female chicks but not males. Fungus-fed hens gained weight more slowly than control hens and also produced fewer eggs. Egg weight and fertility were similar in both groups of hens. Fungus-fed hens were more likely than control hens to produce eggs which lacked a shell. Naive hens exhibited an aversion for infected fescue seed when the seed was first presented to them, but the aversion disappeared after the hens were placed on a diet which included fescue seed for 3 or 6 months. Hens did not discriminate between feed containing infected seed and feed containing uninfected seed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Forest, Range and Wildlife Sciences, Utah State University, Logan, UT 84322-5230, USA. conover@cc.usu.edu
authors.forename: Michael R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Conover
mesh_terms: D000821:Animal Feed / Q000382:microbiology*; D000818:Animals; D001203:Ascomycota / Q000378:metabolism*; D001835:Body Weight; D002645:Chickens; D004531:Eggs; D005260:Female; D005298:Fertility; D008297:Male; D006109:Poaceae / Q000382:microbiology*; D011201:Poultry Diseases / Q000378:metabolism / Q000382:microbiology*; D011897:Random Allocation; D012639:Seeds / Q000382:microbiology*