摘要：Tree leaves are the cheapest, natural and rich source of protein, digestible carbohydrates, minerals and energy for rabbits. However, information on the nutritive value of indigenous tree leaves for rabbits is scarce. Therefore, a systematic study was carried out to: (i) find out the nutrient profile of the common fodder tree leaves in Dir valley of Northern Pakistan; and (ii) to measure the in vitro dry matter (DMD) and neutral detergent fibre (NDFD) digestibility, using rabbit's faeces for microbial culture. The tree species evaluated were Morus alba, Eucalyptus, Ailanthus, Ficus carica and Juglans nigra. Among the tree species, M. alba leaves had higher (P < 0.05) values of crude protein (CP; 21.8%), ash (15.3%) and DMD (62.5%), and lower (P < 0.05) value of neutral detergent fibre (NDF; 35.5%). Based on the high nutritivevalue and digestibility (in vitro), M. alba leaves were further evaluated in an in vivo digestibility trial using indigenous rabbits. A fifteen days digestibility experiment was performed with 40 male rabbits (age 45 ± 2 d; weight 723 ± 10 g), to test the apparent nutrient digestibility co-efficient of a basal diet (control; standard diet with 18.6% CP), and diets based on step-wise replacement of control diet with 25% (FM25), 50% (FM50), 75% (FM75) and 100% (FM100) of fresh M. alba leaves. The rabbits were allocated to the experimental diets according to randomized complete block design, and the blocks were balanced for body weight and age. Compared to control diet, the dry matter (DM), NDF and CP digestibility increased (P < 0.05) with FM25 and FM50 diets, respectively. However, the digestibility of CP and NDF reduced (P < 0.05) with diets FM75 and FM100 as compared to the control diet. The results demonstrate that tree leave are rich source of digestible nutrients and energy for rabbits, and M. alba leaves can be successfully used to replace 25 to 50% of the commercial concentrate-based diets of fattening rabbits, which can potentially increase the wellbeing of the rabbits and profitability of the rabbit farmers.
