NUTRITIVE VALUES OF TREE LEAVES OF SOME TROPICAL SPECIES FOR GOATS

Most of the tropical tree leaves which are used for feeding goats are grown in areas where goats are found abundantly and these trees grow o n a large range of soils, climate and reproduce either through seeds/c oppice or suckers. Goats also prefer to browse on small bushes or thor ny plants rather than grazing but due to the limitation of bushes/thor ny plants, tree leaves form a major part of their diet. Information on the nutritive value of tree leaves particularly for goats is limited as tree leaves are not largely available for many reasons. From the li mited available literature some information about trees along with che mical compositions and nutritive values of their leaves for goats have been reviewed which showed that most of these are rich in crude prote in and TDN contents which can meet the requirements of goats. Some of these like Ailanthus excelsa, Morus alba can even fully satisfy the ma intenance requirement of goats and sheep, respectively. The leaves of Ficus bengalensis are consumed in greater quantities by goats as compa red to bullocks. Most tree leaves contain tannins, an antinutritional factor for which proper precautions need to be taken in selecting the species of tree leaves and their maximum levels of feeding to goats. T ree leaves are available at practically no cost so much attention shou ld be given to their utilization for rearing goats economically. (C) E lsevier Science B.V.