Dieta y selección de pasto por garranos ( Equus ferus atlanticus ) de Galicia

During 119 hours, distributed over 2014 and 2015, a follow-up was carried out by direct and close observation on the natural pasture consumed by two Garrano mares ( Equus ferus atlanticus ) in habitats in the southwest of Galicia. During these observations, plant species consumed by the animals, those that they avoided, and those that they tried and rejected, were distinguished. On average, the mares avoided consuming 57.46% of the 141 species they encountered. Among the phanerogams, certain species were eaten whenever encountered, while others were occasionally avoided, and others always avoided. The mares consumed a combination of herbaceous and woody species throughout the different seasons, among which plants of the Poaceae family and the Ulex genus stood out. They never ingested Basidiomycetes or cryptogams, with the sole exception of Pteridium aquilinum (L.) during the summer. Similarly, they also avoided consuming the tree species present except oak ( Quercus robur L.) acorns and, on rare occasions, willow ( Salix atrocinerea Brot.) and oak ( Quercus robur ) leaves. There was some significant seasonal variation in the diet of the animals. The results obtained in the present study can serve as a documentary basis for the management of the Garranos of which are in a marked decline.