Time Budget on Major Activities of Livestock Grazing Heterogeneous Natural Range and Crop Fields in Semi-Arid Nigeria

Semi-arid rangelands of West Africa provide herbs, trees and shrubs, which together with crop residues form the main sources of feed for the livestock population. Feed supply in this region is characterised by a progressive decline in quantity and quality with advancing dry season. It was reported that walking ability as well as watering frequencies affect the productivity of grazing livestock (Dicko and Sangare, 1984). This study tests the hypothesis that advancing season increases both time spent walking as well as feeding, with a switch from grazing to browsing