Grazing behavior and performance of cattle supplemented with increasing levels of babassu meal on Marandu-grass pastures in silvopastoral systems

Babassu is a palm tree that occupies a vast area of the Brazilian and Central South American territory, extending from Mexico to the south of the Amazon Forest and the ?cerrado? biome. The objective of this study was to evaluate pasture structure, grazing behavior, and performance of growing cattle supplemented with babassu meal and kept in silvopastoral systems formed by babassu palm trees and Marandu grass. Twenty-seven intact crossbred (Nellore ? Guzerat) steers at an average age of 10?months and an average initial weight of 219.2 kg were used in silvopastoral systems composed of Marandu grass and different babassu palm tree densities. Treatments were three babassu palm tree densities (39, 72, and 92 palms ha (?1)) and three increasing levels of babassu meal (10, 20, and 30%; dry matter basis), in a completely randomized design with a 3???3 factorial arrangement with three replications. Forage production in the pastoral environments was not affected by palm densities; however, the babassu meal in the proportions of 10 and 20% resulted in greater accumulation of dead material in the pastures and also interfered with the leaf/stem ratio. Supplementation with increasing levels of babassu meal changed the feeding behavior of grazing cattle. Supplementation of 20% babassu meal in pastures with 72 palms ha(?1) reduces the grazing time and increases the time animals spend idle and moving. Different palm tree densities in pastures and the use of increasing levels of babassu meal in the diet do not interfere with the weight gain of growing cattle.