A photographic technique for assessing the pasture species performance of grazing animals.

Four replicates of each of 16 grasses, herbs and legumes were sown on a thoroughbred stud and a deer farm in the Waikato. Grazing stock (horses, deer or calves) were introduced to the plots and their preferences recorded using 4 automatic winding, infrared, remote-triggering cameras, mounted on poles 3 m high. Distinct differences in preferences were identified among horses, deer and calves. 'Grasslands Matua' was most preferred with horses spending twice as much time grazing Matua plots as most other grasses. Italian and tetraploid ryegrasses were the next most frequently grazed. Deer showed a clear preference for legumes and herbs, particularly low oestrogen red clover, and calves showed a clear preference for grasses other than ryegrass. The novel photographic technique establishes a reliable method of obtaining a permanent record of grazing animal preferences to pure swards of a range of pasture species. Information on the species preferences of different classes of stock provides the starting point for alternative species to ryegrass and white clover when developing the total farm management system.