New Zealand Journal of Agricultural Research abstracts

---

Effects of grazing red clover (Trifolium pratense) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne)/white clover (Trifolium repens) pastures upon growth and venison production from weaner red deer (Cervus elaphus)

E. SOETRISNO1*
T. N. BARRY1+
P. R. WILSON2
J. HODGSON3
R. W. PURCHAS1

1Department of Animal Science
Massey University
PalmerstonNorth, New Zealand

2Department of Veterinary Clinical Science
Massey University
Palmerston North, New Zealand

3Department of Plant Science
Massey University
Palmerston North, New Zealand

*Present address: Department of Animal Science, Faculty of Agriculture, Bengkulu University, Indonesia.

Abstract  Forty-four weaner red deer (Cervus elaphus) fawns (26 stags; 18 hinds) were used to investigate the effects of grazing pure red clover (Trifolium pratense) or perennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne)/white clover (Trifolium repens) pastures upon growth and venison production, with the objective of the stags attaining a minimum target slaughter liveweight (92 kg liveweight; 50 kg carcass) by 12 months of age. The experiment commenced on 13 March and concluded on 26 November 1991. The deer were rotationally grazed on either red clover or perennial ryegrass/white clover pasture during autumn and spring (feed allowances 6, 7 kg dry matter (DM)/h per day, respectively). During winter, all animals were combined and grazed together on perennial ryegrass/white clover pasture, at a pasture residual DM of 1100 kg DM/ha. Pre-grazing herbage mass for red clover and perennial ryegrass/white clover were respectively 3568 and 3706 kg DM/ha in autumn, and 2726 and 2150 kg DM/ha in spring, and 1736 kg DM/ha for perennial ryegrass/white clover in winter. Post-grazing herbage mass for red clover and perennial ryegrass/white clover averaged respectively 1822 and 1882 in autumn and 1705 and 1334 in spring, and 1170 kg DM/ha for perennial ryegrass/white clover in winter. Total nitrogen (N) concentration and organic matter digestibility of both feed on offer and diet selected were higher in red clover than perennial ryegrass/white clover. Liveweight gain of red clover stags (237 versus 207 g/day) and hinds (197 versus 159 g/day) was significantly higher than that of perennial ryegrass/white clover animals in autumn (P < 0.01) and in spring (346 versus 281; 260 versus 188 g/day; P < 0.001). Weaner stags and hinds grazing red clover forage had significantly higher voluntary feed intake than the comparable animals grazing perennial ryegrass/white clover pasture in both autumn (P < 0.05) or spring (P < 0.001). By 12 months of age, stags grazing red clover were 6 kg heavier and hinds 7 kg heavier than animals grazing perennial ryegrass/white clover forage. All (100%) red clover stags attained the minimum target slaughter liveweight (92 kg liveweight ; 50 kg carcass) by 12 months of age at the end of November, compared to 90% of perennial ryegrass/white clover stags. Carcass weights (kg) and dressing percentage (%) of red clover stags were significantly higher than those of perennial ryegrass/white clover stags (58.9 versus 53.3 kg, P < 0.01; 56.2 versus 52.4%, P < 0.001), but the carcass GR was not different (P > 0.05) either before or after being adjusted to equal carcass weight. It was concluded that early venison production from grazed perennial ryegrass/white clover pastures is possible, and that this can be further improved by inputs of red clover. Red clover offers very good potential as a special-purpose forage for venison production.

Keywords  venison production; red deer; Cervus elaphus; red clover; Trifolium pratense; perennial ryegrass; Lolium perenne

PDF file of entire paper: medium quality (658K); (scanned from paper original: notes about this process)

---

This year's abstracts | Journal home page | All abstracts | Publishing home page