Forage palatability of Broussonetia papyrifera an invasive species in Ghana: Relative preference and palatability by sheep and goats

Abstract

Broussonetia papyrifera is an exotic tree widely grown for paper production. Due to its prolific regeneration it has invaded forest canopy gaps and degraded farmlands and has now become an invasive species in Ghana. In enhancing its value for use the plant was evaluated as potential forage for grazing animals vis-à-vis other two existing forage plants: Ficus exasperata and Leucaena leucocephala.The study assessed the palatability and preference of Broussonetia papyrifera using sheep and goats for the wet and dry seasons.The species were assessed in indoor pen feeding trials using eight-unit (3×3 m) pens with the cafeteria method.
The amount of forage offered was 100g (fresh material) in all instances for each species and for ten minutes. Adesign based on 3×2×2 factorial in Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) was used to test the differences in palatability between the three forage species.Results revealed that palatability was higher (P<0.05) in Leucaena leucocephala compared with Ficus exasperata and Broussonetia papyrifera for sheep and goats across seasons. The trend shown might be the result of the effects of familiarity with the Leucaena leucocephala since animals tend to select plants that are familiar than newly introduced and unfamiliar plants. The study also revealed high level of condensed tannin (CT) in Broussonetia papyrifera which might have interfered with forage intake by the animals.There were no significant differences in palatability of Broussonetia papyrifera for goat in both dry and wet season interactions and Ficus exasperata for goat in both dry and wet season interactions (P>0.05).The study concluded that Broussonetia papyrifera could be a potential feed for both sheep and goats across seasons.The research recommended that livestock farmers should incorporate Broussonetia papyrifera feed into their programmes for both sheep and goats and should be introduced to animals from infancy so that it may become a familiar feed for them.