DIETARY PREFERENCE AND DEGRADABILITY OF FORAGE ON A SEMIARID THORNBUSH SAVANNAH BY INDIGENOUS RUMINANTS, CAMELS AND DONKEYS

Dietary preferences of indigenous camels, cattle, donkeys, sheep and goats were studied by direct observation. The dry matter disappearance of the preferred plant species in the forestomach was tested by using the nylon bag technique in sheep and goats. Cattle and donkeys consumed fewer plant species than sheep, goats and camels. Cattle favoured monocotyledons irrespective of the season, these being of poor quality during the dry season. In the green season when highly digestible forage was available cattle still spent 60% of total feeding time (TFT) on poor quality plants. Donkeys spent 20% of TFT on dicotyledons during the green season but 30% during the dry season. Camels and goats spent more than 80% of TFT on dicotyledons irrespective of season. Sheep were intermediate between the extremes. Goats and camels selected a diet with higher protein and lower cellulose contents than the other animal species. The dietary overlap between animal species increased during the dry season. The highest overlap was between cattle and donkeys and the lowest between cattle and camels.