02392naa a2200241 a 450000100080000000500110000800800410001910000220006024501350008226000090021752016800022665000260190665000240193265000190195665000150197565000100199065000220200065000140202265300180203665300110205465300190206577300660208415216602023-07-24       1967    bl uuuu     u00u1 u    #d1 aSTEWART, D. R. M.  aAnalysis of plant epidermis in faecesbA technique for studying the food preferences of grazing herbivores.h[electronic resource]  c1967  aAbstract: Methods of studying plant selection by herbivores, such as direct observation (Lamprey 1963), pasture analysis before and after grazing (Stoddard 1952) and examination of digestive tract contents (Norris 1943), which have proved useful in some circumstances, each have limitations under other conditions (TRibe 1950). The methods are difficult or impossible to apply to the study of preferences shown by wild animals where the pasture contaias many closely intermingled and often heavily grazed plant species, where several animal species are often found feeding together, and where animals may not be collected. The East African planins, with their outstanding variety of large herbivores, exemplify these conditions. A few studies of these herbivores have included the subject of food selection in relation to availability (Talbot 1962; Lamprey 1963; Orr, personal comunication, 1964; Watson & Turner 1965) but with these exceptions there are few data on the subject, particularly of a quantitative nature.The present paper concerns the technique of identifying fragments of leaf epidermis in facces, which avoids some of the limitations of other methods. It has been used in other parts of the world for mammals (Baumgartner & Martin 1939; Dusi 1949; Martin 1954; Hercus 1960; Storr 1961) and locusts (Chapman 1957), but almost entirely for qualitative purposes only and in circumstances involving a much less diverse flora and fauna than are found on the East African plains. The study has entailed feeding experiments with captive animals and has been designed to evaluate the qualitative and quantitative potential of the method under East African conditions.  aDiet study techniques  aFeeding preferences  aForage grasses  aHerbivores  aDieta  aPlanta Forrageira  aSeleção  aAnalise fecal  aFaeces  aFeeding habits  tJournal of Applied Ecologygv. 4, n. 1, p. 82-111, May, 1967.