Comportamento de éguas pastejando diferentes espécies forrageiras

Abstract

The characteristics of forage plants directly influence the feeding behavior of horses in grazing. The objective of this study was to evaluate the grazing behavior of mares in pastures containing different tropical forages: Urochloa decumbens (Brachiaria decumbens), Panicum spp. and Cynodon nlemfuensis (purple star). The experiment was carried out at the Experimental Farm of the Federal University of Uberlândia (UFU), Glória Campus, located in Uberlândia - MG. Ten mares in maintenance were used, with an average age of five years and 413 ± 24 kg of body weight. The experimental paddock, with 4.5 hectares and a stocking rate of 2 AU/ha, presented a mixture of the mentioned forages, in different physiological stages and heights, in addition to invasive plants. Grazing behavior was observed for three consecutive days (March 17-19, 2025), with continuous observations from 08:00 to 16:00, totaling eight hours per day. Continuous focal animal sampling was used at 10-minute intervals. The mares spent 72.4% of the total time grazing, dedicating most of their time to Panicum spp. (32.2%), followed by invasive plants (24.1%), Cynodon nlemfuensis (22.3%) and Urochloa decumbens (21.3%). The greater preference for Panicum spp. can be attributed to its higher leaf:stem ratio. It was also observed that 1% of the time was devoted to idleness, possibly related to rest or satiety after grazing. Regarding the bite rate, U. decumbens presented the highest rate, with 24 bites per minute, followed by Panicum spp. and C. nlemfuensis, with 18 and 16 bites per minute, respectively. It is concluded that, during the daytime, in pastures with a variety of forage species and different physiological stages, mares use more than 70% of their time for grazing, with a preference for Panicum spp.