Last week USDA released its Cattle on Feed report; inventory was 95 percent of April 2022, which was the highest total on record for the month of April, but the 1 April 2023 total on-feed inventory was the lowest since 2017. As WPI noted last week, strong marketing numbers at 99 percent of last year, as expected, prevented the report from being bearish from the much larger than anticipated placements and somewhat higher inventories compared to expectations. However, the report did put a lid on the recent rally in fed cattle prices.
The record high cattle prices in 2014 and 2015 incentivized rapid herd expansion among producers.
Another USDA report issued last week, however, shows that any herd rebuilding this year i...
The magpie goose (Anseranas semipalmata) is the sole living representative species of the family Anseranatidae. This waterbird is found in northern Australia and southern New Guinea.[2] The species is not truly migratory but it sometimes travels large distances to find food and water, especiall...
The common ostrich (Struthio camelus), or simply ostrich, is a species of flightless bird native to certain areas of Africa (and historically, Arabia) and is the largest living species of bird. The common ostrich is one of two extant species of ostriches, the only living members of the genus St...
A pika (/ˈpaɪkə, ˈpiːkə/ PY-kə, PEE-kə[3][4]) is a small, mountain-dwelling mammal native to Asia and North America. With short limbs, a very round body, an even coat of fur, and no external tail, they resemble their close relative the rabbit, but with short, rounded ears.[5] The large-eared pi...
Lobelia (/loʊˈbiːliə, lə-/[4][5][6]) is a genus of flowering plants in the family Campanulaceae comprising 415 species,[7] with a subcosmopolitan distribution primarily in tropical to warm temperate regions of the world, a few species extending into cooler temperate regions.[8] They are known g...