Sheep performance alternative agroforestry system in the Cerrado ecotone: Amazon

SUMMARY Agroforestry systems can be alternative to the reintroduction of areas into disuse, secondary forest, for sheep production. This study evaluated the performance of sheep integrated grass Mombasa and secondary forest of babassu, comparing it with the conventional system of production in full sun. In these two systems were evaluated the climatic conditions and the agronomic and qualitative characteristics of the grass. In animals were evaluated weight gain, consumption, feed conversion, displacement processes and animal productivity. It was observed that ovine silvipastoral in this type of system is possible, but there is a reduction of the animal performance over the traditional operating system. The environment in the integrated system is hot and humid, and the forage density is low, causing the animals to spend more energy to look for food. The accumulation of forage and tillering in the integrated system area reduced and there is reduced carrying capacity and productivity. Despite the reduction in productivity in the integrated system, its operation allows the production of approximately half of what is produced in the conventional system.