Relationship between forage quality and palatability of plant species in Zarrin-Dasht rangelands

Forage quality and palatability of plant species for Baluchi camel were evaluated in the south of Fars province rangelands. Forage quality was measured in two phenological stages (the initiation of vegetative growth and flowering) and their palatability indices were calculated in both stages by free grazing system and timing method. The one-way ANOVA was used to compare the palatability of plant species and factors affecting forage quality (ADF, CP, ME, and DMD) in each phenological stage. The comparison of forage quality factors as well as palatability of each plant species between two phenological stages was performed by paired t-test. Linear regression was used to examine the relationship between forage quality factors and palatability. Results showed that, depending on the kind of species and phenological stage, the quality and palatability of plant species had significant differences. Overall, our results showed that there was no significant relationship between quality and palatability of plant species. Consequently, this study indicated that the Baluchi camel don’t choose plant species for grazing based on forage quality, and other factors such as companion species and the height of plant species might determine their palatability.