Locoweed poisoning generally occurs in early spring. We evaluated cattle grazing of woolly locoweed (Astragalus mollissimus var. mollissimus Torr.) at Gladstone, N.M., and of white locoweed (Oxytropis sericea Nutt. ex T&G) at Capulin, N.M., through the spring and into early summer as the phenological development of warm-season grasses progressed from dormancy to rapid growth. Diets of 8 mature cows were quantified by bite count at each location. Cattle initially rejected woolly locoweed at Gladstone, even though it was the only green forage available in late March and early April. Gladstone cattle were then restricted to a small 7-ha pasture where high grazing pressure and limited feed forced them to graze woolly locoweed (41% of bites). When these cows returned to a larger pasture of unlimited forage availability, they continued eating woolly locoweed (23% of bites). At Capulin, cattle with a history of eating locoweed (loco-eaters) consumed more white locoweed (23% of bites) thin cattle without a history of eating locoweed (6% of bites) during the April grazing period. When warm-season grasses started rapid growth and locoweed matured in June, cattle ceased grazing both locoweed species. This material was digitized as part of a cooperative project between the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. The Journal of Range Management archives are made available by the Society for Range Management and the University of Arizona Libraries. Contact lbry-journals@email.arizona.edu for further information. Migrated from OJS platform August 2020
Scholarly peer-reviewed articles published by the Society for Range Management. Access articles on a rolling-window basis from vol. 1, 1948 up to 5 years from the current year. Formerly Journal of Range Management (JRM). More recent content is available by subscription from SRM.