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The feeding behaviour of Mamber dairy goats grazing on Mediterranean woodland in the Upper Galilee mountains of Israel was studied throughout a year (1991/92). The percentages of crude protein (CP), neutral detergent fibre (NDF), acid detergent fibre (ADF), acid detergent lignin (ADL) and condensed tannins (CT) were determined in samples collected by hand to simulate the plant parts selected by the goats. Total feed intake was evaluated by using Cr-sesquioxide as an external marker to determine the amount of faeces excreted, and 48 h in sacco degradability to assess the digestibility of samples. Overall, more time was spent by goats in feeding on ligneous material (tree and shrub foliage) than herbaceous vegetation (60 and 40% of total feeding time, respectively, P<0·05). The main ligneous species consumed by the goats were Quercus calliprinos, Sarcopoterium spinosum and Calicotome villosa (20, 13 and 7% of total grazing time, respectively). There was considerable variability in the 48 h dry matter (DM) in sacco degradability, and in the concentration of CP, NDF, ADF, ADL and CT, within and between seasons and plant species. Although requirements for nutrients varied according to the physiological stage of the goats, 48 h in sacco DM degradability and the concentration of non-ADF linked (available) CP, NDF, ADF, ADL and CT in the diet did not vary greatly: respective ranges were 45·0–49·4; 9–12·5; 44–53; 33–39; 12–17 and 3·5–4·7%. It is concluded that Mamber goats (i) may not select the best quality diet available, but may avoid wide variations in nutrient content of their diets throughout the year; and (ii) may not select a diet consistent with maximization of milk yield, but rather with optimization of body condition at the onset of the mating season.

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An ecologically sound approach to the problem of brush encroachment onto Israeli rangeland might be their utilization by goats, but better knowledge of the feeding selectivity and ability of goats to thrive in encroached areas is required to devise viable production systems. Direct observation of bites could provide precise and accurate estimates of diet selection, but construction of a sufficiently large database would require too much time. The present study describes the first attempt to construct fecal near-infrared reflectance spectroscopy (NIRS) calibrations of the botanical and nutritional composition of the diet, and of the total intake of free-ranging goats, based on reference values determined with bite-count procedures. Calibration of fecal NIRS was based on 43 observations encompassing 3 goat breeds and 4 periods (spring, summer, and fall of 2004, and spring of 2005). Each observation comprised 242 min of continuous recording of the species and bite-type category selected by a single animal, on each of 2 consecutive days. The mass and chemical quality of each species and bite-type category-a total of more than 200,000 bites-were determined by using the simulated bite technique. Associated feces were scanned in the 1,100- to 2,500-nm range with a reflectance monochromator. Fecal NIRS calibrations had reasonable precision for dietary percentages of the 3 main botanical components: herbaceous vegetation (as one category; R(2) = 0.85), Phillyrea latifolia (R(2) = 0.89), and tannin-rich Pistacia lentiscus (R(2) = 0.77), with SE of cross-validation (SECV) of 7.8, 6.3, and 5.6% of DM, respectively. The R(2) values for dietary percentages of CP, NDF, IVDMD, and polyethylene glycol-binding tannins were 0.93, 0.88, 0.91, and 0.74, respectively, with SECV values of 0.9, 2.1, 4.3, and 0.9% of DM, respectively. The R(2) values for intakes of herbaceous vegetation, P. latifolia, and P. lentiscus were 0.80, 0.75, and 0.65, with SECV values of 71, 64, and 46 g of DM/d, respectively. The R(2) values for the daily nutrient intakes were below 0.60. Fecal NIRS data can be used to expand the databases of botanical and nutritional dietary composition when observed and resident animals graze simultaneously, but intakes should be calculated from fecal NIRS-predicted dietary DM composition and an independent evaluation of DMI.