Digestive utilization of concentrated and fibrous diets by two peccary species (Tayassu peccari, Tayassu tajacu) raised in French Guyana

Abstract Three experiments were carried out on 17 adult collared peccaries ( Tayassu tajacu ) and 4 adult white-lipped peccaries ( Tayassu peccari ) maintained in metabolic crates to measure the total tract apparent digestibility (TTAD) and the rate of passage of feed. Experiment 1 concerned the effect of the species, experiment 2, the effect of the feeding level on TTAD and experiment 3, the effect of dietary fibre level on the rate of passage of feed. The TTAD of dietary components of a concentrated feed was similar to that observed in monogastric species (88.8% for gross energy, 83.3% for nitrogen), but TTAD of fibrous constituents was consistently higher in peccaries (62.0% for neutral detergent fibre NDF, 55.7% for acid detergent fibre ADF). No significant effects of the species nor level of feeding were observed. Average maintenance requirement for energy was estimated at 420 kJ digestible energy (DE)/kg metabolic body weight/day. Animals were able to use and digest a large proportion of fibrous material supplied by rice bran or by a tropical hay from Brachiaria humidicola but a linear decrease of 0.6% in TTAD for each increase of 1% dietary NDF level was observed. The TTAD of energy for rice bran and hay components was respectively 82.7 and 46.5% in connection with a high digestibility coefficient for NDF and ADF components of both products. Additional data indicated an increase in the mean retention time when animals were fed a hay based diet, suggesting a high digestive capacity of adults for fibrous diets. In conclusion, peccaries function more like ruminant animals than monogastric digestors. The present results could be a useful basis for formulation of appropriate diets and practical feeding of the peccary species raised in semi-intensive conditions.