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DETERMINATION OF FORAGE CONCENTRATIONS OF LEAD, NICKEL AND CHROMIUM IN RELATION TO  THE REQUIREMENTS OF GRAZING RUMINANTS IN THE SALT RANGE, PAKISTAN

KAFEEL AHMAD^1*, ZAFAR IQBAL KHAN¹, MUHAMMAD ASHRAF², EHSAN ELAHI VALEEM^3*, ZAHID ALI SHAH¹ AND L. R. MCDOWELL⁴

Abstract: Ruminants are of central to livestock production system in Pakistan and for livestock grazing, forage mineral concentration is of considerable importance. The forage concentrations of Pb, Ni and Cr were investigated with respect to the nutrient requirement of the grazing ruminants in the Soone Valley located within the Salt Range, Punjab, Pakistan. Based on the data recorded, it was concluded that the concentration of these three minerals varied among different pastures and even in different plant parts. The Pb concentration in the leaves ranged from 0.034 to 0.069 mg g^-1 in different pastures, while in pods it ranged from 0.040 to 0.065 mg g^-1. The leaf Cr varied from 0.156 to 0.285 mg g^-1 and in pods it was from 0.166 to 0.223 mg g^{-1 .}The leaf Ni concentration ranged from 0.030 to 0.068 and that in pods from 0.037 to 0.084 mg g^-1. The concentrations of Pb, Ni and Cr observed in the forage from Salt Range are significantly higher than their critical levels already known in the literature. Thus, these forage may cause toxicosis problems in animals grazing the area.

¹Department of Biological Sciences, University of Sargodha, Sargodha, Pakistan.

²Department of Botany, University of Agriculture, Faisalabad-38040, Pakistan.

³Public Private Partnership Unit (PPPU), Planning and Development Department, Government of Sindh, Karachi-74200, Pakistan.

⁴Animal Science Department, University of Florida, P.O. Box 110910 Gainesville, Florida 32611-0691, USA