Editing User:Raven/ignore me (section)

=== Grazing behavior ===
[[File:Stier_Charolais_Linnenbach.JPG|thumb|A [[Charolais cattle|Charolais]] bull grazing]]
[[File:Kor och kalvar på Öja mosse i Ystad 7 maj 2025.webm|thumb|Cows and calves grazing in a pasture in [[Ystad]] 2025.]]
Cattle eat mixed diets, but prefer to eat approximately 70% clover and 30% grass. This preference has a diurnal pattern, with a stronger preference for clover in the morning, and the proportion of grass increasing towards the evening.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Rutter |first=S.M. |year=2006 |title=Diet preference for grass and legumes in free-ranging domestic sheep and cattle: current theory and future application. |journal=[[Applied Animal Behaviour Science]] |volume=97 |issue=1 |pages=17–35 |doi=10.1016/j.applanim.2005.11.016}}</ref> When grazing, cattle vary several aspects of their bite, i.e. tongue and jaw movements, depending on characteristics of the plant they are eating. Bite area decreases with the density of the plants but increases with their height. Bite area is determined by the sweep of the tongue; in one study observing {{convert|750|kg|adj=on}} steers, bite area reached a maximum of approximately {{convert|170|cm2|sigfig=1|abbr=on}}. Bite depth increases with the height of the plants. By adjusting their behavior, cattle obtain heavier bites in swards that are tall and sparse compared with short, dense swards of equal mass/area.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Laca |first1=E.A. |last2=Ungar |first2=E.D. |last3=Seligman |first3=N. |last4=Demment |first4=M.W. |year=1992 |title=Effects of sward height and bulk density on bite dimensions of cattle grazing homogeneous swards |journal=Grass and Forage Science |volume=47 |issue=1 |pages=91–102 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2494.1992.tb02251.x |bibcode=1992GForS..47...91L }}</ref> Cattle adjust other aspects of their grazing behavior in relation to the available food; foraging velocity decreases and intake rate increases in areas of abundant palatable forage.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Bailey |first1=D.W. |last2=Gross |first2=J.E. |last3=Laca |first3=E.A. |last4=Rittenhouse |first4=L.R. |last5=Coughenour |first5=M.B. |last6=Swift |first6=D.M. |last7=Sims |first7=P.L. |year=1996 |title=Mechanisms that result in large herbivore grazing distribution patterns |journal=Journal of Range Management |volume=49 |issue=5 |pages=386–400 |doi=10.2307/4002919|jstor=4002919 |hdl=10150/644282 |hdl-access=free }}</ref> Cattle avoid grazing areas contaminated by the faeces of other cattle more strongly than they avoid areas contaminated by sheep,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Forbes |first1=T.D.A. |last2=Hodgson |first2=J. |year=1985 |title=The reaction of grazing sheep and cattle to the presence of dung from the same or the other species |journal=Grass and Forage Science |volume=40 |issue=2 |pages=177–182 |doi=10.1111/j.1365-2494.1985.tb01735.x |bibcode=1985GForS..40..177F }}</ref> but they do not avoid pasture contaminated by rabbits.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Daniels |first1=M.J. |last2=Ball |first2=N. |last3=Hutchings |first3=M.R. |last4=Greig |first4=A. |year=2001 |title=The grazing response of cattle to pasture contaminated with rabbit faeces and the implications for the transmission of paratuberculosis |journal=[[The Veterinary Journal]] |volume=161 |issue=3 |pages=306–313 |doi=10.1053/tvjl.2000.0550 |pmid=11352488 }}</ref>