The dietary botanical composition of indigenous sheep and goats was determined in the semiarid tropics of northeastern Brazil, using esophageally fistulated animals. Sheep and goats selected similar diets during the dry season (May-Dec.). Main dietary components for both species were dried forbs and browse. Leaf litter from the deciduous trees provided the majority of dry season forage (500-1,500 kg/ha) and was a crucial element of dry season diets (20-70%). During the wet season (Jan.-Apr.), sheep selected mainly grasses and forbs, while goats rapidly shifted among grasses, forbs, and browse. By displaying attributes of both browsers and grazers, neither sheep nor goats conformed to traditionally rigid characterization. We found no indication that goats are better adapted for survival in this tropical environment than are sheep because of the botanical composition of their diets. Management implications of this study for the caatinga vegetation zone are discussed. 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.