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Diversity and nutritional values of leaves of trees and shrubs used as supplements for goats in the sub-humid areas of Benin (West Africa)

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Abstract

In order to identify the most promising browse species for sustaining goat production, the nutritional characteristics of leaves of trees and shrubs and their use in farmers’ feeding strategies were assessed in sub-humid areas of Benin. Two hundred and forty (240) goat farmers were surveyed and their uses of different leaves of trees and shrubs for supplementing their goats documented in two vegetation zones, namely the Sudano-Guinean and Guineo-Congolese zones. Then, samples of 32 leaves were collected at the end of rainy season in October–November, just before the long dry season and analyzed for their chemical composition, in vitro digestibility, and tannin content. Principal component and cluster analyses were performed to identify homogenous groups of leaves on the basis of their nutritional characteristics. Free grazing on natural perennial grasses with supplementation with leaves of trees and shrubs was the main goat feeding practice during the dry season in both zones. Agro-processing by-products were used as feed supplements mainly in the Guineo-Congolese zone. Most of the leaves of trees and shrubs elicited by the surveyed goat farmers had a crude protein content higher than 15%, sufficient for their use as feed supplements. However, this potential could be limited by their high tannin content. One non-native (Gliricidia sepium) and five native shrub species (Ficus thonningii, Antiaris africana, Phyllanthus discoideus, Morinda lucida, Mallotus oppositifolius) were identified as the most promising for supplementing goats during dry season in both zones. Our study was useful in identifying some underutilized and neglected leaves of trees and shrubs that could be recommended to smallholder goat farmers in agroforestry systems for enhancing animal productivities in small-scale farms.

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Data availability

The datasets used and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the goat farmers for accepting to participate in this study.

Funding

This work was supported by funds from EMBRAPA Brazil, provided for the execution of the Africa Brazil Agricultural Innovation Marketplace project AFR 320.

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Author notes

  1. Bossima Ivan Koura and Fifame Panine Yassegoungbe contributed equally to this work.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Ecole de Gestion et d’Exploitation des Systèmes d’Elevage, Université Nationale d’Agriculture, BP 43, Kétou, Benin

    Bossima Ivan Koura

  2. Ecole des Sciences et Techniques de Production Animale Faculté des Sciences Agronomiques, Université d’Abomey-Calavi, 03 BP 2819, Cotonou, Benin

    Bossima Ivan Koura, Fifame Panine Yassegoungbe, Cossi Ulriche Afatondji & Luc Hippolyte Dossa

  3. Department of Animal Science Federal University of Ceará, Avenida Mister Hull, s/n, Fortaleza, Ceará, 60970-355, Brazil

    Magno José Duarte Cândido

  4. Empresa Brasileira de Pesquisa Agropecuaria, CEP 62.010-970, Sobral, CE, Caixa Postal 145, Brazil

    Vinicius Pereira Guimaraes

Authors
  1. Bossima Ivan Koura
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  2. Fifame Panine Yassegoungbe
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Contributions

D.L.H. and G.V.P. designed the research. Y.F.P. and C.U.A. collected the data. G.V.P. made the laboratory analysis. K.B.I. and D.L.H. analyzed the data. K.B.I. and Y.F.P. wrote the manuscript. D.L.H., M.J.D.C., and G.V.P. reviewed and edited the manuscript. All the authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Luc Hippolyte Dossa.

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All farmers and goat breeders gave their consent before conducting the interview.

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Appendix

Appendix

Table 7 Qualitative variables characterizing goat farms in the sub-humid areas of Benin
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Table 8 Quantitative variables characterizing goat farms in the sub-humid areas of Benin
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Koura, B.I., Yassegoungbe, F.P., Afatondji, C.U. et al. Diversity and nutritional values of leaves of trees and shrubs used as supplements for goats in the sub-humid areas of Benin (West Africa). Trop Anim Health Prod 53, 133 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11250-021-02559-9

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