Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-gtxcr Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-23T23:23:36.584Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Voluntary intake and digestion of gorse (Ulex europaeus) by goats and sheep

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 March 2009

J. C. Howe ,
T. N. Barry  and
A. I. Popay
J. C. Howe
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, Massey UniversityPalmerston North, New Zealand
T. N. Barry
Affiliation:
Department of Animal Science, Massey UniversityPalmerston North, New Zealand
A. I. Popay
Affiliation:
Batchelar Agriculture Centre, Ministry of Agriculture and FisheriesPalmerston North, New Zealand
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Summary

Gorse (Ulex europaeus) was harvested in late spring, summer, autumn and winter and fed to six goats kept individually in metabolism cages for 21-day periods. The same gorse was also fed to sheep during the first two periods, but not in autumn and winter, as the hardness and sharpness of the needles caused total rejection by the sheep at these times. Measurements of voluntary intake and apparent digestibility were made over the last 7 days of each period. To minimize effect of diet selection the animals were fed at hourly intervals. Dietary lignin concentration was very high, ranging from 170 to 200g/kg D.M. Voluntary metabolizable energy (ME) intake for goats was respectively 1·60, 0·82, 0·72 and 0·41 times maintenance for the four harvesting times, late spring, summer, autumn and winter. Corresponding values for sheep were 0·90 and 0·33 for gorse harvested in late spring and summer. Thus, in late spring and summer, voluntary ME intake by goats was respectively 1·8 and 2·5 times that of sheep. The reduction in ME intake with time was attributed to increases in the contents of D.M. and of lignin + hemicellulose in depressing voluntary D.M. intake and apparent digestibility respectively. Voluntary intake of both supplementary water and total water per unit D.M. intake were consistently less for goats than sheep. From a comparison with published values, it was concluded that the superiority of. goats over temperate breeds of sheep in digestible dry matter intake (DDMI)/kg W0·75 per day increased as the lignin content of the diet exceeded 120 g/kg D.M., indicating that goats must possess some superior mechanism for breaking down highly lignified diets such as gorse and willow. It is proposed that cashmere fibre production from goats grazing gorse for a 7-month period of each year should be evaluated as an alternative to regulating gorse with chemicals.

Type
Research Article
Information
The Journal of Agricultural Science , Volume 111 , Issue 1 , August 1988 , pp. 107 - 114
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1988

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Agricultural Research Council (1980). The Nutrient Requirements of Ruminant Livestock. Slough, U.K.: Commonwealth Agricultural Bureaux.Google Scholar
Alam, M. R., Poppi, D. P. & Sykes, A. R. (1983). Intake, digestibility and retention time of two forages by kids and lambs. Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production 43, 119–121.Google Scholar
Alam, M. R., Poppi, D. P. & Sykes, A. R. (1985). Comparative intake of digestible organic matter and water by sheep and goats. Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production 45, 107–111.Google Scholar
Bailey, R. W. (1964). Pasture quality and ruminant nutrition. 1. Carbohydrate comparison of ryegrass varieties grown as sheep pastures. New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research 7, 496.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barry, T. N., Manley, T. R. & Duncan, S. J. (1986). The role of condensed tannins in the nutritional value of Lotus pedunculatus for sheep. 4. Sites of carbohydrate and protein digestion as influenced by dietary reactive tannin concentration. British Journal of Nutrition 55, 123–137.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Bascand, L. D. & Jowett, G. M. (1981). Scrubweed cover of South Island agricultural and pastoral land. New Zealand Journal of Experimental Agriculture 9, 307–327.Google Scholar
Black, J. L., Faichney, G. J. & Sinclair, R. E. (1982). Role of computer simulation in overcoming limitations to animal production from pastures. In Nutritional Limits to Animal Production from Pastures (ed. Hacker, J. B.), pp. 473–493. Slough, U.K.: Commonwealth Agricultural Bureau.Google Scholar
Boer, M., Milton, J. T. B. & Ternouth, J. H. (1982). The utilisation of three roughage diets by sheep and Angora goats. Animal Production in Australia 14, 653.Google Scholar
Brinkman, G. L., Matthews, R. E. F. & Earl, W. B. (1986). Possible health effects of manufacture of 2, 4, 5·T in New Plymouth. Report of the Ministerial Committee of Inquiry to the N.Z. Minister of Health.Google Scholar
Broadhurst, R. B. & Jones, W. T. (1978). Analysis of condensed tannins using acidified vanillin. Journal of the Science of Food and Agriculture 29, 788–794.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Brown, L. E. & Johnson, W. L. (1985). Intake and digestibility of wheat straw diets by goats and sheep. Journal of Animal Science 60, 1318–1323.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Coster, A. P., Edmonds, A. S., Fitzsimmons, J. M., Goodrich, C. G., Howard, J. K. & Tustin, J. R. (1986). The use of 2, 4, 5·T in New Zealand. Report to the N.Z. Environment Council.Google Scholar
Devendra, C. (1976). Studies in the intake and digestibility of two varieties (Serdang and Coloniao) of Guinea grass (Panicum maximum) by goats and sheep. 1. Long grass. Mardi Research Bulletin 5, 91–109.Google Scholar
Doyle, P. T., Egan, J. K. & Thalen, A. J. (1984). Intake, digestion and nitrogen and sulphur retention in Angora and Merino sheep fed herbage diets. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 24, 165–169.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Egunjobi, J. K. (1971). Ecosystem processes in a stand of Ulex europaeus L. I. Dry matter production, litter fall and efficiency of solar energy utilisation. Journal of Ecology 59, 31–38.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gamble, A. W. & Mackintosh, J. B. (1982). A comparison of digestion in goats and sheep of similar liveweights. Animal Production in Australia 14, 652.Google Scholar
Geoffroy, F. (1974). Etude compare'e du comportment alimentaire et merycique de deux petits reuminants: La Cherre et le mouton. Annual Zootechnique. 23, 63–73.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gihad, E. A. (1976). Intake, digestibility and nitrogen utilisation of tropical natural grass hay by goats and sheep. Journal of Animal Science 43, 879–883.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Gihad, E. A., El-Bedawy, T. M. & Mehrez, A. Z. (1980). Fibre digestibility by goats and sheep. Journal of Dairy Science 63, 1701–1706.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Grace, N. D. (1983). The mineral requirements of grazing ruminants. New Zealand Society of Animal production, Occasional publication, No. 9.Google Scholar
Grieve, D. G. (1976). Nutritive value of rice straw, sugar cane tops and sorghum tops fed to goats and sheep. 1. Dry matter intake and digestibility. Ghana Journal of Agricultural Science 9, 103–109.Google Scholar
Holmes, C. W. & Moore, Y. F. (1981). Metabolisable energy required by feral goats for maintenance and the effects of cold climatic conditions on their heat production. Proceedings of the New Zealand Society of Animal Production 41, 163–166.Google Scholar
Jones, G. M., Larson, R. E., Javed, A. M., Donefer, E. & Gaudreau, J. M. (1972). Voluntary intake and nutrient digestibility of forages by goats and sheep. Journal of Animal Science 34, 830–838.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
McCabe, Sharon M. & Barry, T. N. (1988). Nutritive value of willow for sheep, goats and deer. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge, 111, (in the Press).Google Scholar
Mlowe, F. K. M. (1978). Some aspects of the competition between seedlings of Gorse (Ulex europaeus) L. and “Grasslands Nui” perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne) L. M. Ag. Sci. thesis, Massey University, New Zealand.Google Scholar
Mousa, H. M., Ali, K. E. & Hume, I. D. (1983). Effects of water deprivation on urea metabolism in camels, desert sheep and desert goats fed dry desert grass. Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology 74 A, 715–720.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ozanne, P. G., Purser, D. B., Howes, K. M. W. & Southey, I. (1976). Influence of phosphorus content on feed intake and weight gain in sheep. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 16, 353.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Radcliffe, J. E. (1985). Grazing management of goats and sheep for gorse control. New Zealand Journal of Experimental Agriculture 13, 181–190.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Satter, L. D. & Slyter, L. L. (1974). Effect of ammonia concentration on rumen microbial protein production in vitro. British Journal of Nutrition 32, 199.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Seth, O. N., Rai, G. S., Yadav, P. C. & Pandey, M. D. (1976). A note on the rate of secretion and chemical composition of parotid saliva in sheep and goat. Indian Journal of Animal Science 46, 660.Google Scholar
Sharma, V. V. & Rajora, N. K. (1977). Voluntary intake and nutrient digestibility of low grade roughages by ruminants. Journal of Agricultural Science, Cambridge 88, 75–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Thompson, A. (1974). The effect of fertiliser and pasture competition on gorse growth and establishment. Proceedings of the 21th New Zealand Weed and Pest Control Conference, pp. 6–10.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ulyatt, M. J., Dellow, D. W., John, A., Reid, C. S. W. & Waghorn, G. C. (1986). Contribution of chewing during eating and rumination to the clearance of digesta from the reticulo. In Control of Digestion and Metabolism in Ruminants (ed. Milligan, L. P.Groum, W. L. and Dobson, A.), pp. 488–517. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey, USA: Prentice-Hall.Google Scholar
Van Soest, P. J. (1982). Nutritional Ecology of the Ruminant. Corvallis, Oregon, U.S.A.: O & B Books.Google Scholar
Watson, C. & Norton, B. W. (1982). The utilisation of Pangola grass by sheep and Angora goats. Animal Production in Australia 14, 467–470.Google Scholar
Wilson, A. D., Leigh, J. M., Hindley, N. L. & Mulham, W. E. (1975). Comparison of the diets of goats and sheep on a Casuarina cristata-Heterodendrum oleifolium woodland community in western New South Wales. Australian Journal of Experimental Agriculture and Animal Husbandry 15, 45–53.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wilson, A. D. (1977). The digestibility and voluntary intake of the leaves of trees and shrubs by sheep and goats. Australian Journal of Agricultural Research 28, 501–508.CrossRefGoogle Scholar