Abstract
The grazing behaviour of young N'dama and Friesian bulls was studied over the wet and dry seasons when the breeds were either grazed together or separately. Mean daily time spent grazing for N'damas was 11.6 h in the dry season and 12.6 h in the wet season. Corresponding values were 11.8 and 13.2 h for Friesians. A mutual stimulation in grazing was observed in the wet season when both breeds were grazed together. Over 75 and over 70% total grazing time was spent in daylight hours for N'damas and Friesians, respectively. Rumination periods ranged between 5.5 and 7.0 h for N'damas and between 4.2 and 6.1 h for Friesians. Rumination time was longer in the dry than the wet season. Longer resting hours were observed in the wet (4.1–7.0 h) than the dry season (4.1–5.0 h) in both breeds.
The application of these observations to practical pasture or range management of cattle is discussed for the humid tropics.