PRICKLY PEAR AS STOCK FEED. — SMITH. 15 



and lucerne hay in mecliuni amount was sho^Ti in the trials 

 to be capable of producing in steers increase exceeding | lb. 

 per day. A similar ration of prickly pear and edible shrub, 

 which should be not infrequently obtainable in the scrubs, 

 would, there appears every reason to assume, be productive 

 of similar increase. The limitation of the prickly pear ration 

 by the restricted appetite sho\ATi for it by steers would, how- 

 ever, generally Umit the rate of fattening increase to a moderate 

 figure, which, though attained in the earlier stages of fattening, 

 would be insufficient to ultimately, in the most favourable 

 circumstances, produce beasts of more than moderately fat or 

 good store condition. 



Accordingly as the edible pear is Umited in amount or 

 the edible shrub is insufficient, cattle ^\-ill fail to do well. The 

 prime beast occasionally reported would appear to be excep- 

 tional and to depend on utihsation of other and better grazing 

 than pricldy pear and shrub, or on a higher appetite for prickly 

 pear than is sho^^Ti by the average animal. 



The appetite of steers for prickly pear is such as to enable 

 their water requirements to be satisfied by the plant at least 

 in cool weather. In hot seasons the highest degree of succulence 

 may suffice, whereas in prolonged drought, owing to the drying 

 out of the prickly pear, the holding of cattle on unwatered 

 country is no doubt highly hazardous, and may entail heavy 

 loss. The administration of water to prickly pear fed animals 

 has been shown to be, per se, unharmful. Yet it would appear 

 that close frequentation of water by cattle during ver}' hot 

 seasons might prove a disadvantage, owing to depletion of the 

 edible prickly pear in the \4cinity and eating out of ecUble shrub. 

 The reported losses of prickly pear agisted cattle ha\dng access 

 to water would seem to be accidental, due in drought to 

 immoderate drinking of w^ater induced by prolonged thirst, 

 and would include animals that have perished after bogging 

 at the margins of waterholes. 



The appetite displayed by milking cows for prickly pear 

 {see Part II.) would indicate that, if the supply of protein- 

 rich shrub is abundant, cows will be maintained in milk sufficient 

 for the nourishment of calves at foot. The very limited appetite 

 of calves for prickly pear* would show that prickly pear and 

 shrub browse, partly because of the inaccessibility of the 



* The authors experiments with calves not here reported. 



