Bibliography: leaves 105-121. This study reports the first thorough investigation of palatability variation in Atriplex vesicaria Heward ex Benth. (bladder saltbush). Intensive small-plot dietary trials, supported by a paddock dietary experiment, cross-fence comparisons and cafeteria trials, showed that sheep preferentially grazed female saltbushes over male and bisexual ones. Sheep avoided male saltbushes due to a chemical deterrent, and used visual (male flower spike) and olfactory cues to detect male plants. The effect of this selective grazing was to reduce the size and reproductive output of female shrubs. Sheep also tended to return to shrubs they had grazed previously. In the semi-arid regions of South Australia, where bladder saltbush is grazed year-round, physical protection is recommended to maximise survival and reproductive output of heavily grazed shrubs.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:ADTP/82855 |
| Date | January 1998 |
| Creators | Maywald, Dionne Lee. |
| Source Sets | Australiasian Digital Theses Program |
| Language | English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Relation | SUA, SUA:R |
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