Microbial degradation of rice and barley straws in the sheep rumen and the donkey caecum

The chemical composition, intake, digestibility, ultrastructure and microbial degradation of rice straw from Camargue were compared with barley straw. These variables were observed in two different herbivore digestive ecosystems: the sheep rumen and the donkey caecum. The two straws differed essentially in their ash content, which was three times higher in rice, owing to its silica content. Other chemical components were comparable, except a higher phenolic acids-to-lignin ratio in rice. Rice straw was better ingested than barley straw. Organic matter and neutral detergent fibre digestibilities were the same in both straws. Dry matter and cell wall disappearances could be adjusted to the exponential modelling equation with lag time, and differed between animals but not between straws. The sheep rumen had a higher extent of degradation, but the donkey caecum had a higher degradation rate. Statistical analysis revealed that cell-wall components degradation was similar in the two straws except for ferulic acid, which was more degraded in rice straw. Scanning electron microscopy showed important differences in parenchyma degradation, which was much more effective in rice.