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conferenceseries
.com
Volume 7, Issue 1 (Suppl)
J Ecosyst Ecogr
ISSN: 2157-7625 JEE, an open access journal
Biodiversity Congress 2017
April 27-28, 2017
April 27-28, 2017 Dubai, UAE
6
th
International Conference on
Biodiversity and Conservation
J Ecosyst Ecogr 2017, 7:1(Suppl)
http://dx.doi.org/10.4172/2157-7625-C1-027Characterizing husbandry practices and breeding objectives for Sheko cattle owners for designing
conservation and improvement strategies in Ethiopia
E Bayou
1
, A Haile
2
, S Gizaw
3
and Y Mekasha
3
1
Haramaya University, Ethiopia
2
International Centre for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas, Ethiopia
3
International Livestock Research Institute, Ethiopia
A
survey was conducted through single field visits and interviews with 360 respondents in selected districts of Bench Maji
Zone, Southwestern Ethiopia to assess the Sheko cattle farming system, breeding practices and identify cattle breeding goals
and constraints for designing Sheko cattle conservation and improvement strategies. The total populations of true Sheko cattle in
the sampled districts within each PA obtained by counting directly on the field were 2813. Under random mating, the inbreeding
coefficient, in both mid-altitude (1.72) and lowland (1.35) agro ecological zones (AEZs) was higher than the maximum acceptable
level (0.063). Results showed that mean Sheko cattle herd size of sampled household was 1.09 in mid-altitude and 1.29 in lowland
AEZs. About 93.9% and 88.3% of the households, respectively, in mid-altitude and lowland do not have breeding bull. Random
mating predominates in both mid-altitude (87.2%) and lowland (85%) AEZs. The reported peak season of mixing of the different
Sheko cattle herd within a village start after the crop aftermath (February to May) was picked from the cultivated land, whereas,
beginning from main rainy season in June to the end of crop harvesting time, usually on January smallholder farmers in both
AEZs keep their cattle separately. The observed male to female mating ratio was 1:16.4 in mid-altitude and 1:8.6 in lowland. Sheko
bulls were castrated at the age of 4.2 and 4.8 years in mid-altitude and lowland respectively. Appearance/confirmation was the most
important trait in choosing of breeding male for both mid-altitude and lowland small holder Sheko owners; whereas, milk yield was
the most important trait for the choice of breeding cows in both AEZs. The purpose of keeping Sheko cattle in mid-altitude area was
for draught followed by milk, income, saving and dowry, in that order. In lowland agro ecology, milk production, draught power and
income generation are the purposes for keeping Sheko cattle. In both AEZs feed shortage, disease and labour shortage were the most
important cattle production constraints, in that order. It was concluded that an integrated system approach to breed conservation and
improvement need to incorporate traits sought by the cattle keepers, the multiple roles of cattle, and the existing traditional herding
and breeding practices.
eliasbayou2009@yahoo.comNutritional ecology of the mona monkey (
Cercopithecus mona
) in Okomu National Park, Nigeria
Olaleru F
1
, Ogunjemite B G
2
, Onadeko A B
1
and
Egonmwan R I
1
1
University of Lagos, Nigeria
2
Federal University of Technology, Akure, Nigeria
M
ona monkey is one of the eight nonhuman primate species in Okomu National Park, a lowland rainforest in southwest Nigeria.
Little is known about the varieties of plant parts it accesses as part of the diet and much less about the nutritional composition.
We studied the feeding ecology of the monkey using field observations and opportunistic collection of food refuse. Nutritional
contents of their diet were determined through proximate, fibre fraction and amino acids analyses using standard procedures. Their
diet included 28 plants species in 19 families, 57% being fruits.
Gmelina arborea
fruit and
Jateorhiza macrantha
seed discovered
in the study were not found in literature as the monkey’s diet. Mona monkeys obtained 79% of their diets within the Park. The
proximate contents of the foods were higher during the dry season. Percent crude protein of 7.02±1.92 (n=14) is within the 6.4-8.0%
recommended by National Research Council for primates in captivity. Amino acids cysteine and methionine had the least values. A
good management plan where monkeys obtain all their food resources from within the park is recommended in order to adequately
conserve them.
folaleru@unilag.edu.ng