Effect of Leucaena and Sesbania supplementation on body growth and scrotal circumference of Ethiopian highland sheep and goats fed teff straw basal diet
Introduction
Tree fodder has been used as livestock feed for many years and can provide sufficient nutrients to meet the nutritive demand of livestock. In rural areas, ruminants often browse the palatable foliage of a wide variety of trees and shrubs. A vast array of trees serves as animal fodder in the tropics and subtropics, often browsed or casually lopped and fed (Skerman, 1977; Le Houèrou, 1980). Sesbania and Leucaena species have widely been adopted. Both species produce ample quantities of fodder with excellent quality. However, before their full integration into traditional farming systems, questions relating to adaptability under a wide range of environmental conditions, responses to a wide range of cultural treatments and animal responses have to be addressed.
In the 1970s and early 1980s, use of Leucaena leucocephala and Sesbania sesban as fodders became widespread and popular. Many feeding trials, reforestation, agroforestry and soil conservation projects made use of or made reference to L. leucocephala and it was looked upon as a panacea species. Unfortunately, this bias has now proved inadvisable because in recent years, the Leucaena psyllid has proved to be a significant factor determining the continued use and expansion of this valuable browse species. Although when offered in fresh and dry forms, L. pallida was ranked lower than L. leucocephala by both sheep and goats (Kaitho et al., 1997), it is likely to be a good replacement of L. leucocephala. Siaw et al. (1993)observed no differences in ruminal degradation characteristics and gas production and in a recent palatability study with sheep, L. pallida was ranked third among other 39 browses when fed dry and was placed in the same cluster group as L. leucocephala (Kaitho et al., 1996). L. pallida has high edible dry matter yield and excellent coppicing ability (Wheeler and Brewbaker, 1989). It has also been observed to be more cold tolerant and psyllid resistant (Bray, 1984) than L. leucocephala.
Data on the effect of feeding L. pallida and S. sesban on small ruminants reproduction is scarce (especially in goats). Some studies of L. leucocephala on cattle indicate no deleterious effect on oestrous cycle, conception rate, gestation length, calf birth weight and calf pre-weaning mortality (Hamilton et al., 1971). Jones et al. (1989)observed an improvement in calving percentage from 54% to 75% in cows grazing L. leucocephala for 4 years. Holmes et al. (1981)suggested that cows eating high levels of L. leucocephala conceived but aborted within the first 3 months. Abortion was ascribed to either anti-mitotic effect of mimosine or to the goitrogenic effect of 3-hydroxy-4(1H)-pyridone (DHP), a ruminal metabolite of mimosine.
Most feeding trials on Leucaena and Sesbania supplementation have been for short durations and focused mainly on feed intake, feed conversion and average daily gain. Information regarding their effects on the reproductive physiology of small ruminants is scarce and the available data are contradictory or inconclusive at best. This study was therefore designed to determine the long term effect of supplementation of L. pallida (ILCA 14191) and S. sesban (ILCA 1190) on the growth and reproductive performance of male Ethiopian Highland sheep and goats fed on teff straw (Eragrostis tef) basal diet. In this paper we compared the effects of these browses as supplements on dry matter intake, live weight gain, digestion and scrotal circumference changes in sheep and goats. Their effects on histological testicular parameters and sperm characteristics are discussed elsewhere.
Section snippets
General
This study was carried out at the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI) research farm at Debre Zeit, Ethiopia. Unchopped teff straw was given ad libitum (i.e., about 1.5 times the previous day's intake) supplemented with 150 g wheat bran (control), 200 g L. pallida (L1), 400 g L. pallida (L2), 200 g S. sesban (S1) or 400 g S. sesban (S2). The browse leaves were previously air dried and stored in bags. All the forages were grown on the farm (1850 m above sea level; annual rainfall
Results
Crude protein (Nx6.25) contents for S. sesban, L. pallida, wheat bran and teff straw were 261, 296, 166, 36 g kg−1 DM, respectively (Table 1). Teff straw and wheat bran had higher fibre content than the browses. However, the browses had higher NDF-bound N. L. pallida had higher quercetin and total soluble proanthocyanidins than S. sesban. All the feed ingredients had low levels of genistein and daidzein. Mimosine and saponins were detected in L. pallida and S. sesban, respectively.
There was no
Discussion
Ruminants fed a better quality diet tend to compensate through protein repletion and consequently high initial growth rates. On meeting body protein requirements and as the animals matures, they deposit more fat than protein; thus, efficiency of gain reduces tremendously in the latter phase. This might have partly contributed to the decline in live weight gain with time (Table 3), however, there are strong indications that accumulation of anti-nutritional factors had a significant role. Among
Acknowledgements
The authors thank Olga Karnaf, Kassahun Zewdie and the sheep barn staff at ILRI Debre Zeit station for their invaluable assistance.
References (41)
- et al.
Ram scrotal circumference measurements
Theriogenology
(1980) - et al.
Palatability of wilted and dried multipurpose tree species fed to sheep and goats
Anim. Feed Sci. Technol.
(1997) - et al.
Effects of nutritional supplements on testicular size and the secretion of LH and testosterone in Merino and Booroola rams
Anim. Reprod. Sci.
(1987) - et al.
Relationship of testicular growth and size to age, body weight and onset of puberty in Menz ram lambs
Theriogenology
(1992) - et al.
The effect of protein intake on body weight, scrotal circumference and semen production of Bunaji bulls and their Friesian crosses in Nigeria
Anim. Reprod. Sci.
(1988) - et al.
Analysis of mimosine and 3-hydroxy-4(H)-pyridone by high-performance liquid chromatography
J. Chromatogr.
(1980) - Adams, N.R., 1989. Phytoestrogens. In: Cheeke, P.R. (Ed.), Toxicants of Plant Origin, Vol. IV. CRC Press, Boca Raton,...
- Alderman, G., 1985. Prediction of the energy value of compound feeds. In: Haresign, W., Cole, D.J.A. (Eds.), Recent...
- et al.
Some effects of level of feeding and body condition score upon sperm production and gonadotropin concentration in the ram
J. Anim. Prod.
(1982) - AOAC, 1990. Official Methods of Analysis, 14th edn. Association of Official Analytical Chemists, Washington DC,...
Ram mating performance in Border Leicesters and related breed types: 3. Relationship of ram serving capacity, testes diameter, live weight, breed and age with flock fertility
Aust. J. Exp. Agric.
Chemical triggering of reproduction in Microtus montanus
Science
Evaluating hybrids between Leucaena leucocephala and L. pulverulenta as potential forage plants
Aust. J. Exp. Agric. Anim. Husb.
Chemically mediated interactions between woody plants and browsing mammals
J. Range Manage.
The relationship between testicular size and daily sperm output of rams
Proc. Aust. Soc. Anim. Prod.
Toxicity and metabolism of pyrrolizidine alkaloids
J. Anim. Sci.
Leucaena leucocephala as a feed for dairy cows: direct effect on reproduction and residual effect on the calf and lactation
Aust. J. Agric. Res.
Cataracts, goitre and infertility in cattle grazed on an exclusive diet of Leucaena leucocephala
Aust. Vet. J.
Cited by (21)
The potential influence of plant-based feed supplements on sperm quantity and quality in livestock: A review
2012, Animal Reproduction ScienceCitation Excerpt :Mekoya et al. (2009a,b), supplementing S. sesban to the diet at levels of up to 300 g/kg, found beneficial effects on the onset of puberty (−34 days), testicular growth (+13%) and sperm count (+17%) of male sheep. Kaitho et al. (1998) also tested this plant, but their study did not show a specific increase in scrotal circumference, and the subsequent analysis of testis histology (Woldesmeskel et al., 2001) showed the presence of necrosis and tubular degeneration. The authors assumed that this was due to the saponins, which were found to have spermicidal activity.
Sesbania sesban as a fodder tree in Ethiopian livestock farming systems. Feeding practices and farmers' perception of feeding effects on sheep performance
2011, Livestock ScienceCitation Excerpt :In feeding studies at ILRI in Ethiopia and in other sub-Saharan countries, body weight gain of animals receiving Sesbania as a supplement to straw-based diets was superior to that of animals supplemented with other legumes (Kaitho et al., 1998; Melaku, 2002; Nsahlai et al., 1995; Osuji and Odenyo, 1997; Woodward and Reed, 1997). However, some experiments have shown that prolonged and uninterrupted intake of Sesbania may have a negative effect on live weight gain and reproductive performance of small ruminants (Kaitho et al., 1998; Melaku, 2002; Woldemeskel et al., 2001). Farmers feeding Sesbania also reported reproduction problems in small ruminants (Mekoya, personal observation).
Effect of supplementation of Sesbania sesban on reproductive performance of sheep
2009, Livestock Science
- 1
Present address: Department of Animal and Poultry Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Private Bag X01 Scottsville, Pietermaritzburg, 3209 South Africa.