Botanical composition of cattle and vizcacha diets in central Argentina
Issue Date
1999-07-01Keywords
free range husbandrydiversity
Lagostomus maximus
ambient temperature
feces composition
rain
species differences
grazing intensity
diets
cattle
seasonal variation
Argentina
botanical composition
grasses
forage
feeding preferences
Metadata
Show full item recordCitation
Bontti, E. E., Boo, R. M., Lindström, L. I., & Elia, O. R. (1999). Botanical composition of cattle and vizcacha diets in central Argentina. Journal of Range Management, 52(4), 370-377.Publisher
Society for Range ManagementJournal
Journal of Range ManagementDOI
10.2307/4003548Additional Links
https://rangelands.org/Abstract
Cattle (Bos taurus) and vizcacha (Lagostomus maximus) diets were examined monthly in the semiarid caldénal in central Argentina. Cow-calf operations are the most important economic activities within the region. In spite of a widespread distribution of the vizcacha in Argentina, comparative studies of the diet of cattle and vizcacha are scarce. The objective of this work was to analyze the botanical composition, seasonal trends, and possible dietary overlap between cattle and vizcacha. Diets were determined by microscopic analysis of cattle and vizcacha feces collected from November 1994 through December 1995 in a shrubland community of the southern caldénal. Grasses were the bulk of the diet for both herbivores. Piptochaetium napostaense (Speg.) Hack. was the most abundant grass in vizcacha (53%) and cattle (40%) diets. Prosopis caldenia Burk. pods partially (34%) replaced this grass in cattle diets during late summer and fall. Consumption of P. napostaense was generally higher (13%) in vizcachas than in cattle, especially during the dry period of the study (21%). During the drier months, cattle consumed more of the less preferred grasses (48%). Forbs were poorly represented in the diets perhaps because of scarce rains and low availability. Classification and ordination techniques revealed seasonal trends and overlapping diets. A greater overlap (75%) was found during the wet period due to simultaneous consumption of P. napostaense by both herbivores. Trends in diet diversity were similar with indices generally higher for cattle than for vizcachas, especially during the dry period.Type
textArticle
Language
enISSN
0022-409Xae974a485f413a2113503eed53cd6c53
10.2307/4003548