Variations in Patch Use by Ruminant and Non-ruminant Herbivores in a Tropical Wildlife Reserve, Ghana

作     者：Godfred BEMPAH Joseph KAFRIFA Moses ANARTEY LU Changhu Godfred BEMPAH;Joseph KAFRIFA;Moses ANARTEY;鲁长虎

作者机构：College of ForestryNanjing Forestry UniversityNanjing 210037China Department of Conservation Biology and EntomologyUniversity of Cape CoastCape Coast CC-145-8669Ghana Department of Animal ScienceUniversity of Energy and Natural ResourcesSunyani BS-0061-2164Ghana College of Biology and the EnvironmentNanjing Forestry UniversityNanjing 210037China 

出 版 物：《Journal of Resources and Ecology》 (资源与生态学报（英文版）)

年 卷 期：2022年第13卷第6期

页      面：1143-1151页

核心收录：

学科分类：07[理学] 0713[理学-生态学] 

基　　金：The Priority Academic Program Development of Jiangsu Higher Education Institutions  China (2018-87) 

主　　题：digestive physiology herbivore mammals foraging hippopotamus 

摘      要：Food processing and consumption by herbivores are affected differently by the availability of forage quality and quantity per unit of time. This demonstrates the “Allometric response concept, and it is considered a significant determinant in habitat use for foraging by grazers. The relevance of this approach has comprehensively been applied to herbivores of different body sizes, but little is known about its demonstration to explain patch use in herbivores with different digestive physiology and body size. We explain the use of patches by grazing herbivores of different digestive physiology and body sizes, Hippopotamus amphibius(hippopotamus, mega non-ruminant) and cattle(ruminant), by integrating foraging relationship herbivores. We analysed the significant relationships between species dropping densities and environmental variables across forty-eight 100 m×100 m plots in Bui National Park,Ghana, during the wet and dry seasons. We found that both species utilised areas closer to the river in the wet season, but the H. amphibius foraged further away from the river during the dry season. Sward height also determined patch use by both species, with the H. amphibius utilising shorter swards than the cattle. Considering the quality of food resources, the study revealed that patch selection of ruminants(cattle) was significantly influenced by nitrogen content. In contrast, acidic detergent fibre content was positively related to non-ruminant species(***). The high seasonal effect of sward height and food quality on patch use is primarily due to the species digestive physiology and body size of hippopotamus and cattle at the Bui National Park.