Browse Nutrition: Semiarid Regions

Browse is the tender shoots, twigs, or leaves of trees or shrubs that are acceptable for grazing. Browse plants, beside grasses, constitute one of the cheapest sources of feed for ruminants. Browse plants provide vitamins and very frequently mineral elements, which are mostly lacking in grassland pastures. Moreover, browse species are indispensable sources of animal feed in the world, particularly in areas with dry to semidry climates. Such species can alleviate feed shortages or even fill feed gaps in the winter and especially in the spring, when grassland growth is limited or dormant due to unfavorable weather conditions. These include several spontaneous shrubs and trees, which are essential components of natural communities such as shrublands and woodlands. They cover large areas and constitute grazing lands for all domestic animals, mainly goats, deer, and sheep. Browse production and nutritive value vary widely among species and varieties. This book, in forty-five chapters, describes the nutritional potential of noticeable trees and shrubs growing in northeastern Mexico and southern Texas, USA. It analyses the browse utilization by range ruminants. The author argues the importance browse minerals as food resources. He debates the plant mechanisms against herbivory. He describes the leaf litter as a feed resource for range small ruminants. The author examines the diet selection by ruminants. In addition, this book covers the taxonomic characteristics and nutritional profiles of the foliage of eighteen legumes and twenty-one nonlegumes native tree/shrub species growing in the semiarid regions of Northern Mexico.