World's Best Scientists 2026 revealed!

D-Index & Metrics

Animal Science and Veterinary

D-Index
50
Citations
16324
World Ranking
596
National Ranking
200

David R. Mertens publication distribution in Animal Science and Veterinary in 2026

The chart shows the distribution of publications by all Research.com ranked scientists in the field of Animal Science and Veterinary in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where David R. Mertens sits on this spectrum.

29–33 publications: 1 scientists 34–38 publications: 6 scientists 39–43 publications: 17 scientists 44–48 publications: 23 scientists 49–53 publications: 28 scientists 54–58 publications: 44 scientists 59–63 publications: 66 scientists 64–68 publications: 75 scientists 69–73 publications: 71 scientists 74–78 publications: 85 scientists 79–83 publications: 108 scientists 84–88 publications: 105 scientists 89–93 publications: 84 scientists 94–98 publications: 103 scientists 99–103 publications: 97 scientists 104–108 publications: 95 scientists 109–113 publications: 89 scientists 114–118 publications: 88 scientists 119–123 publications: 109 scientists 124–128 publications: 93 scientists 129–133 publications: 89 scientists 134–138 publications: 95 scientists 139–143 publications: 92 scientists 144–148 publications: 80 scientists 149–153 publications: 75 scientists 154–158 publications: 74 scientists 159–163 publications: 67 scientists 164–168 publications: 53 scientists 169–173 publications: 62 scientists 174–178 publications: 63 scientists 179–183 publications: 50 scientists 184–188 publications: 55 scientists 189–193 publications: 50 scientists 194–198 publications: 27 scientists 199–203 publications: 44 scientists 204–208 publications: 31 scientists 209–213 publications: 28 scientists 214–218 publications: 38 scientists 219–223 publications: 33 scientists 224–228 publications: 36 scientists 229–233 publications: 29 scientists 234–238 publications: 35 scientists 239–243 publications: 23 scientists 244–248 publications: 24 scientists 249–253 publications: 29 scientists 254–258 publications: 28 scientists 259–263 publications: 21 scientists 264–268 publications: 25 scientists 269–273 publications: 11 scientists 274–278 publications: 18 scientists 279–283 publications: 13 scientists 284–288 publications: 18 scientists 289–293 publications: 10 scientists 294–298 publications: 12 scientists 299–303 publications: 11 scientists 304–308 publications: 15 scientists 309–313 publications: 14 scientists 314–318 publications: 14 scientists 319–323 publications: 8 scientists 324–328 publications: 8 scientists 329–333 publications: 13 scientists 334–338 publications: 14 scientists 339–343 publications: 13 scientists 344–348 publications: 10 scientists 349–353 publications: 11 scientists 354–358 publications: 5 scientists 359–363 publications: 8 scientists 364–368 publications: 8 scientists 369–373 publications: 6 scientists 374–378 publications: 7 scientists 379–383 publications: 8 scientists 384–388 publications: 3 scientists 389–393 publications: 4 scientists 394–398 publications: 5 scientists 399–403 publications: 8 scientists 404–408 publications: 5 scientists 409–413 publications: 4 scientists 414–418 publications: 3 scientists 419–423 publications: 8 scientists 424–428 publications: 5 scientists 429–433 publications: 3 scientists 434–438 publications: 5 scientists 439–441 publications: 5 scientists 442+ publications: 99 scientists
29 publications 442+

This scientist: 103 publications — 29th percentile

29% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 442 publications or more.

David R. Mertens D-index placement in Animal Science and Veterinary in 2026

The chart shows the D-index (discipline H-index) distribution of Animal Science and Veterinary scientists ranked by Research.com in 2026. The highlighted bar marks where David R. Mertens sits on this spectrum.

20 D-Index: 5 scientists 21 D-Index: 22 scientists 22 D-Index: 31 scientists 23 D-Index: 44 scientists 24 D-Index: 53 scientists 25 D-Index: 66 scientists 26 D-Index: 80 scientists 27 D-Index: 101 scientists 28 D-Index: 106 scientists 29 D-Index: 116 scientists 30 D-Index: 154 scientists 31 D-Index: 158 scientists 32 D-Index: 143 scientists 33 D-Index: 137 scientists 34 D-Index: 126 scientists 35 D-Index: 134 scientists 36 D-Index: 112 scientists 37 D-Index: 115 scientists 38 D-Index: 105 scientists 39 D-Index: 111 scientists 40 D-Index: 107 scientists 41 D-Index: 87 scientists 42 D-Index: 74 scientists 43 D-Index: 62 scientists 44 D-Index: 61 scientists 45 D-Index: 41 scientists 46 D-Index: 51 scientists 47 D-Index: 43 scientists 48 D-Index: 28 scientists 49 D-Index: 47 scientists 50 D-Index: 40 scientists 51 D-Index: 34 scientists 52 D-Index: 33 scientists 53 D-Index: 43 scientists 54 D-Index: 16 scientists 55 D-Index: 32 scientists 56 D-Index: 21 scientists 57 D-Index: 18 scientists 58 D-Index: 28 scientists 59 D-Index: 33 scientists 60 D-Index: 17 scientists 61 D-Index: 21 scientists 62 D-Index: 18 scientists 63 D-Index: 21 scientists 64 D-Index: 9 scientists 65 D-Index: 20 scientists 66 D-Index: 11 scientists 67 D-Index: 16 scientists 68 D-Index: 12 scientists 69 D-Index: 17 scientists 70 D-Index: 13 scientists 71 D-Index: 15 scientists 72 D-Index: 11 scientists 73 D-Index: 11 scientists 74 D-Index: 14 scientists 75 D-Index: 5 scientists 76 D-Index: 6 scientists 77+ D-Index: 100 scientists
20 D-Index 77+

This scientist: 50 D-Index — 81st percentile

81% of scientists in this discipline score the same or lower.

The last bar groups every scientist with 77 D-Index or more.

Research.com Recognitions

  • 2021 - American Dairy Science Association Fellowship Award
  • 2004 - DuPont Pioneer Forage Award, American Dairy Science Association
  • 2003 - American Feed Industry Association Award, American Dairy Science Association

Overview

What is he best known for?

The fields of study he is best known for:

  • Biochemistry
  • Food science
  • Botany

David R. Mertens mostly deals with Forage, Animal science, Neutral Detergent Fiber, Agronomy and Digestion. David R. Mertens combines subjects such as Body weight, Feed conversion ratio and Nutrient deficiency with his study of Forage. His Animal science research is multidisciplinary, incorporating elements of Mathematical model and Fodder.

His research in Neutral Detergent Fiber intersects with topics in Dairy cattle and Biotechnology. His work in Agronomy tackles topics such as Starch which are related to areas like Digestion and Residue. His biological study spans a wide range of topics, including Rumen, Fermentation, Retention time and Infrared Spectrophotometry.

His most cited work include:

  • Gravimetric Determination of Amylase-Treated Neutral Detergent Fiber in Feeds with Refluxing in Beakers or Crucibles: Collaborative Study (1673 citations)
  • Creating a System for Meeting the Fiber Requirements of Dairy Cows (915 citations)
  • Forage Quality, Evaluation, and Utilization (577 citations)

What are the main themes of his work throughout his whole career to date?

The scientist’s investigation covers issues in Animal science, Forage, Food science, Neutral Detergent Fiber and Agronomy. His Animal science study combines topics from a wide range of disciplines, such as Rumen, Fodder and Manure. His Forage research incorporates themes from Hay, Milk production and Ruminant.

The various areas that David R. Mertens examines in his Food science study include Propionate and Polysaccharide. As a member of one scientific family, he mostly works in the field of Neutral Detergent Fiber, focusing on Repeatability and, on occasion, Reproducibility. His work on Pasture is typically connected to Quality as part of general Agronomy study, connecting several disciplines of science.

He most often published in these fields:

  • Animal science (43.84%)
  • Forage (32.88%)
  • Food science (30.14%)

What were the highlights of his more recent work (between 2009-2020)?

  • Animal science (43.84%)
  • Rumen (21.92%)
  • Dairy cattle (19.18%)

In recent papers he was focusing on the following fields of study:

David R. Mertens focuses on Animal science, Rumen, Dairy cattle, Food science and Silage. In his articles, David R. Mertens combines various disciplines, including Animal science and Mastication. His Dairy cattle study combines topics in areas such as Monensin, Cottonseed, Biotechnology and Dietary Carbohydrates.

His Food science study frequently draws connections to other fields, such as Synthetic fiber. His Silage research is classified as research in Agronomy. His Dry matter study focuses on Neutral Detergent Fiber in particular.

Between 2009 and 2020, his most popular works were:

  • Regulation of Forage Intake (569 citations)
  • pH dynamics and bacterial community composition in the rumen of lactating dairy cows. (87 citations)
  • Microbial inoculant effects on silage and in vitro ruminal fermentation, and microbial biomass estimation for alfalfa, bmr corn, and corn silages (84 citations)

In his most recent research, the most cited papers focused on:

  • Biochemistry
  • Botany
  • Food science

Animal science, Rumen, Silage, Forage and Nutrient deficiency are his primary areas of study. His work deals with themes such as Biomass and Biochemistry, which intersect with Animal science. His Biomass research incorporates elements of Fermentation and Dry matter, Agronomy, Crop.

His work on Streptococcus bovis and Monensin as part of his general Biochemistry study is frequently connected to Operational taxonomic unit and Total mixed ration, thereby bridging the divide between different branches of science. In his work, he performs multidisciplinary research in Streptococcus bovis and Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer analysis.

Best Publications

  • Gravimetric Determination of Amylase-Treated Neutral Detergent Fiber in Feeds with Refluxing in Beakers or Crucibles: Collaborative Study

    David R Mertens

  • Creating a System for Meeting the Fiber Requirements of Dairy Cows

    D.R. Mertens

  • Forage Quality, Evaluation, and Utilization

    G.C. Fahey;NE Utilization eng Apr Lincoln

  • Regulation of Forage Intake

    D. R. Mertens

  • Predicting intake and digestibility using mathematical models of ruminal function.

    D. R. Mertens

  • The effect of starch on forage fiber digestion kinetics in vitro.

    D.R. Mertens;J.R. Loften

  • Evaluating Constraints on Fiber Digestion by Rumen Microbes

    M. S. Allen;D. R. Mertens

  • Influence of buffer pH and raw corn starch addition on in vitro fiber digestion kinetics.

    R.H. Grant;D.R. Mertens

  • Correlation of Acid Detergent Lignin and Klason Lignin with Digestibility of Forage Dry Matter and Neutral Detergent Fiber

    H.G. Jung;D.R. Mertens;A.J. Payne

  • Preharvest Factors Influencing Quality of Conserved Forage

    P. J. Van Soest;D. R. Mertens;B. Deinum

  • Effect of diet on populations of three species of ruminal cellulolytic bacteria in lactating dairy cows.

    P.J. Weimer;G.C. Waghorn;C.L. Odt;D.R. Mertens

  • Assessing Minimum Amounts and Form of Roughages in Ruminant Diets: Roughage Value Index System

    E. M. Sudweeks;L. O. Ely;D. R. Mertens;L. R. Sisk

  • Rate and extent of digestion.

    D. R. Mertens

  • A Dynamic Model of Fiber Digestion and Passage in the Ruminant for Evaluating Forage Quality

    D. R. Mertens;L. O. Ely

  • Cell wall accessibility and cell structure limitations to microbial digestion of forage

    Unknown

  • Cell wall fermentation kinetics are impacted more by lignin content and ferulate cross-linking than by lignin composition

    John H Grabber;David R Mertens;Hoon Kim;Hoon Kim;Carola Funk

  • Microbial inoculant effects on silage and in vitro ruminal fermentation, and microbial biomass estimation for alfalfa, bmr corn, and corn silages

    Francisco E. Contreras-Govea;Richard E. Muck;David R. Mertens;Paul J. Weimer

  • Prediction of excretion of manure and nitrogen by Holstein dairy cattle

    V.A. Wilkerson;D.R. Mertens;D.P. Casper

  • Kinetics of Cell Wall Digestion and Passage in Ruminants

    D. R. Mertens

  • The prediction of methane production of Holstein cows by several equations

    V.A. Wilkerson;D.P. Casper;D.R. Mertens

  • Milk fat depression in dairy cows: role of silage particle size.

    R.J. Grant;V.F. Colenbrander;D.R. Mertens

  • Relationship of Rate and Extent of Digestion to Forage Utilization-A Dynamic Model Evaluation

    D. R. Mertens;L. O. Ely

  • Challenges in measuring insoluble dietary fiber.

    D. R. Mertens

  • Milk Fat Depression in Dairy Cows: Role of Particle Size of Alfalfa Hay

    R.J. Grant;V.F. Colenbrander;D.R. Mertens

  • Effect of monensin feeding and withdrawal on populations of individual bacterial species in the rumen of lactating dairy cows fed high-starch rations

    Paul J. Weimer;David M. Stevenson;David R. Mertens;Elvin E. Thomas

  • Assessing minimum amounts and form of roughages in ruminant diets: roughage value index system [Dairy cows].

    E M Sudweeks;L O Ely;D R Mertens;L R Sisk

Frequent Co-Authors

Paul J. Weimer
Paul J. Weimer University of Wisconsin–Madison
Michael S. Allen
Michael S. Allen Michigan State University
Debbie J. R. Cherney
Debbie J. R. Cherney Cornell University
Hoon Kim
Hoon Kim University of Wisconsin–Madison
John Ralph
John Ralph Great Lakes Bioenergy Research Center
P. J. Van Soest
P. J. Van Soest Cornell University
George E. Shook
George E. Shook University of Wisconsin–Madison
Richard E. Muck
Richard E. Muck University of Wisconsin–Madison
Hans-Joachim G. Jung
Hans-Joachim G. Jung University of Minnesota
Fachuang Lu
Fachuang Lu South China University of Technology

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