The influence of season and topography on manganese (mn) status of grazing Java thin-tailed sheep in the agriculture area in mijen of semarang-central Java

The research was aimed to study the manganese (mn) status of grazing in java thin-tailed sheep (jtts),its interrelation with mn status in the forages and soil,the influence of seasonal factors and land topography upon the status of respected mineral. twenty male jtts of about 6 months old and 2 paddocks with field grass vegetation were used in the research. treatment factor i was topography namely plain and slope,while treatment factor ii was season,namely dry season and rainy season. the number of experimental sheep was divided into 4 groups with 5 heads of sheep for replication in each group and had been grazed for 2 months. the measured variables were soil ph,mn content in the soil,forage,feces,and blood plasma. the collected data were processed using analysis of variance with factorial treatment pattern of 2 x 2 in completely randomized design. mn level in blood plasma of sheep grazed on plain and slope paddocks were 0.62 and 0.61 mg/l,respectively,in dry season whereas in rainy season were 0.68 and 0.52 mg/l,respectively. topography did not influence the level of mn in blood plasma in dry season. level of mn in blood plasma of the sheep was lowest in slope area,whereas in plain area was the highest (p<0.05). manganese level of soil,forage,feces and blood plasma of experimental sheep showed the adequate mn status. © 2013 diponegoro university. all rights reserved.