Figure 1. Effect of maternal lactation during embryogenesis on adult performance.

The density plots show the posterior distribution of the difference in a) milk yield b) lifespan and c) fat/protein between cows whose embryogenesis occurred during the first (black line), second (red line) or third (blue line) maternal lactation and cows whom embryogenesis occurred in the absence of maternal lactation. The contrasts for presence vs absence of lactation showed lower production level, shorter lifespan and higher fat/protein ratio in the adult life of those individuals conceived during maternal lactation, with statistically significant posterior distributions.