Min Wang, a scientist at the Institute of Subtropical Agriculture, Chinese Academy of Sciences, China, is developing a mathematic description methane emission model which can separate basal methane emissions largely resulting from the slowly degraded fraction of diet and feeding methane emissions mainly resulting from the fast degradable fraction. This model also can describe daily change of methane emission. He used their data obtained from lactating dairy cows and found that 70% of total methane emissions were from the basal emissions. I am thinking to use this model for our data to see the ratio of two parts of emissions from sheep fed chicory or brassicas in comparison with pasture. Maybe the ratio was changed, resulting in reduction in methane emissions. 

If it is allowed, I would like to get your permission to provide him some original data from published work (Sun et al., 2011; Sun et al., 2012a; Sun et al., 2012b). 

Sun, X.Z., Hoskin, S.O., Muetzel, S., Molano, G., Clark, H., 2011. Effects of forage chicory (Cichorium intybus) and perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) on methane emissions in vitro and from sheep. Animal Feed Science and Technology 166-167, 391-397.
Sun, X.Z., Hoskin, S.O., Zhang, G.G., Molano, G., Muetzel, S., Pinares-Patino, C.S., Clark, H., Pacheco, D., 2012a. Sheep fed forage chicory (Cichorium intybus) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) have similar methane emissions. Animal Feed Science and Technology 172, 217-225.
Sun, X.Z., Waghorn, G.C., Hoskin, S.O., Harrison, S.J., Muetzel, S., Pacheco, D., 2012b. Methane emissions from sheep fed fresh brassicas (Brassica spp.) compared to perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne). Animal Feed Science and Technology 176, 107-116.

If analysis of our data with his model is published, PGgRc will be acknowledged.

David Pacheco and Peter Janssen have been approached and oral approvals obtained from them.
