Neutral detergent fibre in forages preferred by African elephant (L. africana) in Rimoi Game Reserve, Kenya

Abstract

Grass and browse have their relative advantages and disadvantages. For grass, intake rates are higher (it is easier to harvest and handle), it is lower in toxins and when its nutrient content is high, its fibre content is low (Lindsay, 1994), it also provides a return per unit time feeding that is higher than browse. It may, however, lack certain essential key nutrients and when it matures its nutrient content becomes very low. Browse offers generally higher levels and diversity of nutrients, but toxin and lignin levels are also higher. The tendency of elephants to shift from consuming mainly grass in the wet season to mostly browse in the dry season has been noted by many researchers (Santra et al., (2008); Lindsay, (1994)) [8]. Elephants can fulfil energy requirements from either browse or grass, depending on availability and quality, and switch to consuming crops whenever their forage sources are insecure, as grass availability is highly seasonal. Despite the attractiveness of crops to elephants, Osborn (2004) observed that elephants did not immediately leave protected areas when crops planted along the boundary were mature, which suggests that crop raiding could not be linked to the availability of crops, and thus this behaviour could be related to the quality and availability of wild foods. Hence it is important to establish the particular plant species which elephants eat in the wild, as the availability of these species could diminish the temptation to begin crop raiding. This paper presents findings of an investigative study on Neutral Detergent Fiber in Forages Preferred by African elephant (L. africana) in Rimoi Game Reserve, Kenya.