Range Productivity and Plant Preference

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The full potential of the interaction between plant and animal systems is generally not well known and is seldom reached with presently used management skills, especially under common open grazing systems. The range management practices adopted are more plant oriented and most of the interventions may not consider animal type or feeding behavior. This situation may lead to shortcomings in range management process as related to decision making concerning interventions and grazing management planning. This book is addressing means of better understanding of feeding behavior towards development of management strategies that aim to maximizing the use of the existing ecosystem and at the same time increasing animal production. Parameters investigated included distance walked by sheep and goats in open grazing system and at different plant growth stages, across open and protected range areas, in addition to response of animals in terms of metabolizable energy intake and its relation to maintenance and energy required for walking. Variations in plant selection as indicated by use of different animals were also investigated in the context of plant types and plant growth characteristics.