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Sheep performance under intensive continuous grazing of native grasslands of Paspalum notatum and Axonopus compressus in the subtropical region of the Highlands of Central Mexico

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Abstract

Liveweight gain was evaluated in tropical Dorper X Pelibuey lambs under intensive continuous grazing of native grasslands dominated by Paspalum notatum (PN) or Axonopus compressus (AC) in the subtropics of Central Mexico. Two trials were undertaken. Trial 1 lasted 12 weeks with 10 lambs (initial weight 18 ± 2.57 kg, 3 months old) per treatment in 2002, and Trial 2 for 13 weeks with 8 lambs (initial weight 24.0 ± 2.0 kg, 4 months old) per treatment. Lambs were weighed once per week, and liveweight change was estimated by linear regression over day of the experiment, using individual regression coefficients as unbiased estimates of daily liveweight change; analysed in a random block design. Lambs on Trial 1 gained 0.061 kg/lamb/day on PN and 0.047 kg/lamb/day on AC (P > 0.05) at an overall mean stocking rate of 25 lambs/ha. In Trial 2, liveweight gain was significantly larger in PN (0.060 kg/lamb/day) than on AC (0.043 kg/lamb/day) (P < 0.05), at a mean stocking rate of 21.5 lambs/ha. It is concluded that intensive continuous grazing of native grasslands in the subtropics of the highlands of Central Mexico enables moderate liveweight gains for weaned lambs during the rainy season; with better results in grasslands dominated by Paspalum notatum.

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Abbreviations

ADF:

Acid Detergent Fibre

DM:

Dry Matter

INEGI:

National Institute for Statistics, Geography and Informatics of Mexico

m.a.s.l.:

metres above sea level

ME:

Metabolisable Energy

NDF:

Neutral Detergent Fiber

NHA:

Net Herbage Accumulation

OM:

Organic Matter

SAGARPA:

Ministry of Agriculture, Livestock, Rural Development, Fisheries and Food from the Mexican government

SEM:

Standard Error of the Mean

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Acknowledgements

Authors are grateful to the Centro Universitario UAEM Temascaltepec of the Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México (UAEM), in particular to Ing. Luis M. Ríos Garcìa, manager, and all the staff of the University Farm for their help and support for this work.

The experimental work was achieved thanks to the financial support of Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México through grant UAEM 1640/2003. Our gratitude also to the Mexican National Council for Science and Technology (Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología - CONACYT) for the grant received by Francisca Avilés-Nova which allowed her to undertake her doctoral studies within which this work was developed.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Centro Universitario UAEM Temascaltepec, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario # 100, 50000, Toluca, Estado de México, México

    F. Avilés-Nova

  2. Centro de Investigación en Ciencias Agropecuarias (CICA), Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario # 100, 50000, Toluca, Estado de México, México

    A. Espinoza-Ortega & O. A. Castelán-Ortega

  3. Secretaría de Investigación y Estudios Avanzados, Universidad Autónoma del Estado de México, Instituto Literario # 100, 50000, Toluca, Estado de México, México

    C. M. Arriaga-Jordán

Authors
  1. F. Avilés-Nova
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  2. A. Espinoza-Ortega
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  3. O. A. Castelán-Ortega
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  4. C. M. Arriaga-Jordán
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Correspondence to C. M. Arriaga-Jordán.

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Avilés-Nova, F., Espinoza-Ortega, A., Castelán-Ortega, O.A. et al. Sheep performance under intensive continuous grazing of native grasslands of Paspalum notatum and Axonopus compressus in the subtropical region of the Highlands of Central Mexico. Trop Anim Health Prod 40, 509–515 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-008-9127-4

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