Trees and Shrubs Influence the Behaviour of Grazing Cattle and Rumen Fermentation

Hedgerows and woody strips have been used to enclose fields but declined due to the loss of a direct economic value, abandonment of traditional management techniques and agricultural intensification. Nowadays, shrubs and trees on pastures are promoted again through environment-friendly policies and the interest in using them as forage for ruminant increases in both temperate and tropical ecosystems. Woody plants on farmland could yield a wide range of ecosystem services and provide benefits for farmers and their animals such as forage supply to livestock, animal protection against severe weather and reduced parasitic infestation. Moreover, shifts in digestive physiology can be observed that will in turn affect the welfare and the performances of the animal and the production system as a whole. Therefore, in order to contribute to the development of sustainable systems using shrubs and trees as a feed component in its full right, the aim of this work was to investigate the influence of trees and shrubs on the behaviour of grazing cattle and their selectivity towards woody species, and to determine the changes induced by temperate and tropical shrub and tree species on rumen fermentation. Firstly, the behaviour of grazing dairy heifers was recorded during the whole grazing season as well as their selectivity towards temperate woody species in a hedge. It was concluded that having access to a hedge influenced the behaviour of grazing cattle, as the animals ingested woody plants in each season but mostly when the available pasture biomass was lower. The most selected species were Carpinus betulus, Corylus avellana, Cornus sanguinea and Crataegus monogyna. Secondly, the chemical composition, in vitro rumen fermentation profile and protein precipitation capacity (PPC) of the temperate shrub and tree species were measured. The analyses showed that Fraxinus excelsior presented the most interesting profile in terms of chemical composition and in vitro fermentation production. Among the preferred species, C. monogyna and C. avellana produced lower CH4 and the latest had the highest PPC. Thirdly, three newly-developed cultivars of the tropical Desmanthus genus were studied for their effects on in vitro rumen fermentation including potential to reduce CH4. Desmanthus