Rotational Grazing Systems and Livestock Grazing Behavior in Shrub-Dominated Semi-Arid and Arid Rangelands

Rotational grazing systems (RGS) are often implemented to alleviate undesirable selective grazing by livestock. At both fine and coarse scales, livestock selectively graze individual plants, patches, communities, and landscapes. Smaller pastures, increased stocking density, and rotation allow managers to constrain livestock movement and determine season and frequency of grazing, potentially limiting selectivity and preventing repeated grazing of preferred plants. However, in arid and semi-arid rangelands, forage growth is limited primarily by precipitation rather than defoliation frequency. When soil moisture is adequate, forage is abundant and defoliation levels are typically low, and repeated, intensive defoliation of preferred plants is less likely than in more mesic areas where more consistent precipitation and soil moisture storage allows animals to establish and maintain spatial hierarchies of grazing patterns. Many southwestern rangelands contain diverse vegetation, which provides quality forage during different times of the year. These spatial and temporal patterns of forage distribution may not be amenable to manipulation with RGS. Tracking data show that livestock often alternate among locations within pasture boundaries and can opportunistically exploit areas with higher quality forage when they are available. Higher stock densities combined with higher stocking rates can increase livestock use of less preferred areas, but overall distribution patterns of intensive-rotational and extensive grazing systems are often comparable at similar stocking rates and distances from water. Management that ensures that grazing of riparian areas does not occur during the critical late summer period may be more beneficial than RGS that periodically defers livestock use throughout the grazing season. In arid and semi-arid shrublands, timely adjustments to animal numbers and practices that improve grazing distribution at regional and landscape scales are more likely to be effective in maintaining or improving rangeland health than fencing and RGS.     

Long-term impacts of livestock grazing and browsing in the Succulent Karoo: a 20-year study of vegetation change under different grazing regimes in Namaqualand§

This study used a fence-line contrast approach to investigate the long-term impact of high grazing pressure on the vegetation at a site in Namaqualand, South Africa. Forty pairs of permanently marked plots were surveyed in 1996, 2006 and 2016. The main objective was to investigate changes in the vegetation structure and species composition between the near-continuously grazed communal rangelands and the relatively lightly grazed commercial rangelands over the 20-year period. The results showed a decline in total vegetation cover in both commercial and communal rangelands in 2016 relative to the two earlier sampling periods. This can be attributed to the low rainfall in 2016 and was due largely to a reduction in annual plant cover, especially on the communal rangeland. Perennial shrub species provide a fodder bank that can be utilised by livestock in times of drought and can buffer short-term deficits in forage supply. However, the annuals that dominate the vegetation of the communal rangeland do not form such fodder banks and consequently do not have the same multi-year buffering capacity as perennial shrubs. This provides the mechanism whereby long-term continuous grazing decreases resilience to rainfall fluctuations and increases livestock variability, thereby promoting non-equilibrium-type dynamics in the system.     

Local participation,equity, and popular support in Lesotho's Range Management Area programme

Abstract

The Range Management Area (RMA) programme was implemented in 1982 to improve range condition and livestock productivity on Lesotho's rangelands by mobilizing collective management of communal grazing areas. Active local participation in management initiatives, equitable distribution of costs and benefits and popular support of the programme are prerequisites to collective management. These factors were assessed at the first two RMAs to be established in Lesotho (1 and 2, established in 1982 and 1985, respectively). In RMA 2 the residents were more systematically involved in developing the programme. In both RMAs active participation was largely confined to activities which were either mandated in RMA regulations and enforced, or voluntary but consistent with pre‐programme practices. In spite of possible regressive impacts on livestock distribution and supplemental feeding requirements, participants did not view equity as problematic. Popular programme support was high, particularly at the older RMA. These findings suggest that significant progress has been made in setting the stage for collective management but continued outside support is required at both RMAs.     

Effects of Livestock Grazing Management on Grassland Birds in a Northern Mixed-Grass Prairie Ecosystem

Grassland birds have undergone substantial population declines throughout much of their historic ranges in North America. Most of the remaining grassland bird habitat is restricted to rangelands managed for livestock production, so grazing management has strong implications for grassland bird conservation efforts. We conducted 1 830 point-count surveys at 305 sites during 2016–2017 to evaluate the relative effects of three livestock grazing systems on the abundance and community composition of grassland birds in a northern mixed-grass prairie ecosystem of eastern Montana, United States. Our objectives were to 1) evaluate effects of grazing management on abundance and community composition of grassland obligate birds, focusing specifically on grazing systems, stocking rates, and interactions with rangeland productivity; 2) evaluate the importance of local vegetation characteristics for grassland birds within grazing systems; and 3) assess the effectiveness of rest-rotation grazing to create patch-heterogeneity in rangeland vegetation through the alteration of structural components and the response of grassland birds to these treatments. Overall, we found inconsistent responses in abundances of grassland birds relative to livestock grazing systems and no discernable differences among grazing systems relative to community composition. However, local abundances were often driven by interactions between grazing system and rangeland production potential, suggesting the effects of livestock grazing management were generally mediated by rangeland productivity. In addition, associations between avian abundance and grazing management parameters (e.g., stocking rate) were species specific. Ubiquitous guidelines for livestock grazing systems may be inappropriate for grassland bird conservation efforts in the northern mixed-grass prairie, and high stocking rates may negatively impact populations of dense-grass obligate grassland birds in this region.     

Soil Health as a Transformational Change Agent for US Grazing Lands Management

There is rapidly growing national interest in grazing lands’ soil health, which has been motivated by the current soil health renaissance in cropland agriculture. In contrast to intensively managed croplands, soil health for grazing lands, especially rangelands, is tempered by limited scientific evidence clearly illustrating positive feedbacks between soil health and grazing land resilience, or sustainability. Opportunities exist for improving soil health on grazing lands with intensively managed plant communities (e.g., pasture systems) and formerly cultivated or degraded lands. Therefore, the goal of this paper is to provide direction and recommendations for incorporating soil health into grazing management considerations on grazing lands. We argue that the current soil health renaissance should not focus on improvement of soil health on grazing lands where potential is limited but rather forward science-based management for improving grazing lands’ resilience to environmental change via 1) refocusing grazing management on fundamental ecological processes (water and nutrient cycling and energy flow) rather than maximum short-term profit or livestock production; 2) emphasizing goal-based management with adaptive decision making informed by specific objectives incorporating maintenance of soil health at a minimum and directly relevant monitoring attributes; 3) advancing holistic and integrated approaches for soil health that highlight social-ecological-economic interdependencies of these systems, with particular emphasis on human dimensions; 4) building cross-institutional partnerships on grazing lands’ soil health to enhance technical capacities of students, land managers, and natural resource professionals; and 5) creating a cross-region, living laboratory network of case studies involving producers using soil health as part of their grazing land management. Collectively, these efforts could foster transformational changes by strengthening the link between natural resources stewardship and sustainable grazing lands management through management-science partnerships in a social-ecological systems framework.     

Monitoring of Livestock Grazing Effects on Bureau of Land Management Land

Public land management agencies, such as the Bureau of Land Management (BLM), are charged with managing rangelands throughout the western United States for multiple uses, such as livestock grazing and conservation of sensitive species and their habitats. Monitoring of condition and trends of these rangelands, particularly with respect to effects of livestock grazing, provides critical information for effective management of these multiuse landscapes. We therefore investigated the availability of livestock grazing-related quantitative monitoring data and qualitative region-specific Land Health Standards (LHS) data across BLM grazing allotments in the western United States. We then queried university and federal rangeland science experts about how best to prioritize rangeland monitoring activities. We found that the most commonly available monitoring data were permittee-reported livestock numbers and season-of-use data (71% of allotments) followed by repeat photo points (58%), estimates of forage utilization (52%), and, finally, quantitative vegetation measurements (37%). Of the 57% of allotments in which LHS had been evaluated as of 2007, the BLM indicated 15% had failed to meet LHS due to livestock grazing. A full complement of all types of monitoring data, however, existed for only 27% of those 15%. Our data inspections, as well as conversations with rangeland experts, indicated a need for greater emphasis on collection of grazing-related monitoring data, particularly ground cover. Prioritization of where monitoring activities should be focused, along with creation of regional monitoring teams, may help improve monitoring. Overall, increased emphasis on monitoring of BLM rangelands will require commitment at multiple institutional levels.     

Wildlife or livestock? New directions for developing communal rangelands in South Africa

The paper agrees with three fundamental points raised by Vetter (in this issue), whilst highlighting an emerging trend in wildlife land use, which should be considered in policy making. Firstly, the paper supports the argument that communal rangelands are important as objects of biodiversity conservation and, secondly, the argument that livestock production alone is not sufficient as a mechanism for alleviating poverty, but rather livelihoods diversification and multisectoral strategies are required for this purpose. Lastly, the paper supports the need for mechanisms to ensure tenure security for sustainable use of communal rangelands. I argue that the historical shift to wildlife land use previously observed on private farms in South Africa is now inevitable on communal rangelands and will require explicit consideration in the policy on communal rangelands. Although such development in the communal rangelands has potential to meet the important goals of livelihoods diversification as indicated by Vetter, it also has potential to threaten existing rural livelihoods. The paper suggests several issues to be considered as wildlife becomes part of the rural landscape in some areas, in addition to issues raised by Vetter relevant to policy making.     

划区轮牧与草地可持续性利用的研究进展

划区轮牧是一种充分利用饲草生长旺季而进行的集约、区块式放牧管理系统。本文总结了近年来国内外轮牧制度的发展现状,概括了划区轮牧的优势包括:提高草地生态系统的功能性、草地生产力;降低草食动物肠胃线虫感染率;分析了其与传统连续放牧相比所具有的局限性。进一步从放牧类型的延展、放牧策略的改进、人为因素的投入、生态模型研究等多角度综合考究,提出综合协调生物因素与环境、平衡生态与经济以及优化牧企合作现状的轮牧策略,以期为轮牧对于生态恢复和草地可持续性利用的生产实践应用提供科学依据和优化管理的决策参考。     

Multiple strategies for resilient livelihoods in communal areas of South Africa

Livestock farming in communal areas is an activity pursued by rural households as one of a range of livelihood strategies aimed at spreading risk. The cash and non-cash benefits derived from livestock, as well as the wide range of secondary resources harvested from communal rangelands, make an important contribution to livelihood diversification and, hence, resilience. Rural development policy should therefore not focus narrowly on commercialisation of livestock production in communal areas. Rather, it should take a multifaceted approach to building livelihood resilience while providing pathways for households to escape poverty through enhancing the multiple benefits of livestock, adding value to secondary rangeland resources, and expanding the rural non-farm economy.     

Economic impact of poisonous plants on the rangeland livestock industry

Poisonous plants on rangelands cost producers and consumers upwards of $250 million annually in the U.S. These costs are attributable not only to livestock deaths and diminshed productivity related to plant poisoning, but also to the management costs associated with usage of forage in areas infested with poisonous plants. At present, even relatively small losses from plant poisoning can cause financial and economic impacts that threaten range enterprises, particularly those using public lands.     

Effects of Long-Term Livestock Grazing on Fuel Characteristics in Rangelands: An Example From the Sagebrush Steppe

Livestock grazing potentially has substantial influence on fuel characteristics in rangelands around the globe. However, information quantifying the impacts of grazing on rangeland fuel characteristics is limited, and the effects of grazing on fuels are important because fuel characteristics are one of the primary factors determining risk, severity, continuity, and size of wildfires. We investigated the effects of long-term (70+ yr) livestock grazing exclusion (nongrazed) and moderate levels of livestock grazing (grazed) on fuel accumulations, continuity, gaps, and heights in shrub-grassland rangelands. Livestock used the grazed treatment through 2008 and sampling occurred in mid- to late summer in 2009. Nongrazed rangelands had over twofold more herbaceous standing crop than grazed rangelands (P < 0.01). Fuel accumulations on perennial bunchgrasses were approximately threefold greater in nongrazed than grazed treatments. Continuity of fuels in nongrazed compared to grazed treatments was also greater (P < 0.05). The heights of perennial grass current year’s and previous years’ growth were 1.3-fold and 2.2-fold taller in nongrazed compared to grazed treatments (P < 0.01). The results of this study suggest that moderate livestock grazing decreases the risk of wildfires in sagebrush steppe plant communities and potentially other semi-arid and arid rangelands. These results also suggest wildfires in moderately grazed sagebrush rangelands have decreased severity, continuity, and size of the burn compared to long-term nongrazed sagebrush rangelands. Because of the impacts fuels have on fire characteristics, moderate levels of grazing probably increase the efficiency of fire suppression activities. Because of the large difference between fuel characteristics in grazed and nongrazed sagebrush rangelands, we suggest that additional management impacts on fuels and subsequently fires need to be investigated in nonforested rangelands to protect native plant communities and prioritize management needs.     

The effect of Holistic Planned Grazing™ on African rangelands: a case study from Zimbabwe

Holistic Planned Grazing? (HPG) is purported to have positive long-term effects on rangelands, enhancing ecosystem services. Given comparable environmental templates, but different management regimes, vegetation monitoring and landscape function analysis showed the Africa Center for Holistic Management (ACHM) at Dimbangombe had a significantly higher rangeland condition (composition, cover, standing crop and soil health) than adjacent Sizinda (SCR) and Monde (MCR) communal rangelands. Overall grazer density on ACHM is 42% higher than that of SCR (no data for MCR). Finer-scale satellite collar data for ACHM yielded a calculated stocking rate of 0,55 LSU ha^-1 y^-1 or 24 590 kg km^-2, which constitutes high-density grazing. An energy flow estimate shows that the grazing resource would, on average, not be limiting for livestock on ACHM but limiting on SCR. HPG may include an element where kraals are inserted into degraded rangelands for a short period. Overall, ACHM shows stable perennial composition with smaller tufts significantly closer together. A similar result was visible in SCR where maize yields were visibly higher on kraaled areas than on adjacent untreated fields. HPG yields positive long-term effects on ecosystem services (soils and vegetation) and points to the HPG approach enhancing the sustainability of livestock and wildlife in this environment.     

Minimum population size and potential impact of feral and semi-feral donkeys and horses in an arid rangeland

Farmers in the northern, communally managed parts of the Succulent Karoo, an arid rangeland system in South Africa, historically used donkeys and horses for transport and ploughing. With increasing mechanisation, draught animal power has largely been replaced by machines. Yet, donkeys and horses have been maintained in the agricultural landscape in small feral and semi-feral herds. Research has shown that they compete directly with productive livestock (mostly sheep and goats) for forage resources, contributing little to the local economy. Local farmers identify the presence of feral donkeys and horses as one of the primary challenges in maintaining sustainable grazing regimes on their land. However, records of the number of animals roaming the rangelands are scarce and anecdotal. We therefore conducted a combination of aerial, ground, and social surveys to estimate the minimum population size and potential grazing impact of the donkey and horse population in two communally farmed sites in the Succulent Karoo. We show that, in the representative sites surveyed, there are at least 376 equines (274 donkeys and 102 horses), representing approximately the equivalent of 2 228 sheep and goats, and consuming ～8% of the potential grazing available for productive livestock in these areas. This could represent a significant lost opportunity cost for local farmers in the region.     

宁夏干草原不同放牧方式对植物群落经济类群的影响

该研究紧密结合宁夏中部地区草原的实际,系统地开展了不同放牧方式下草地植物特性、草地植物群落结构、牧草生物学与生态学特性及放牧家畜的生产性能等方面的研究。结果表明:实行6区的划区轮牧方式是科学利用该类草地的最佳方式。轮牧比对照草地生产力提高73.84%。羊只体重轮牧组分别比对照(传统舍饲)、连续放牧和季节放牧组提高4.7kg、0.35kg和1.6kg。     

麦类作物粮饲兼用研究进展

粮饲兼用是指将营养期作物用于青绿饲草生产(放牧或刈割),待作物再生形成籽粒后收获籽粒的一种生产措施。这一措施已在全球10多个国家和地区广泛应用,以麦类作物的粮饲兼用最为普遍,一定程度上缓解了全球普遍存在的饲草供应季节性不均衡与家畜需求相对稳定的矛盾,促进了畜牧业的持续稳定发展。粮饲兼用的效益优势在于可确保作物籽粒生产的稳定,同时获取额外家畜生产收益。然而,不合理的粮饲兼用会导致饲草及籽粒的产量及品质均会受到影响,有必要开展相关研究以规范化粮饲兼用的应用模式。本文分析了麦类作物粮饲兼用的分布及其效益优势,深入分析了作物类型、播种时间及密度、水热条件等对粮饲兼用生产的影响,归纳得到如下4条技术要点。1)麦类作物可在分蘖期用于适度的利用,保留原有茎尖分生组织可维持籽粒生产的相对稳定。2)应优先选育冬性较强,早期生长缓慢,粮饲兼用不易破坏其茎尖分生组织且花期较晚的高秆品种用于粮饲兼用。3)粮饲兼用作物时,播种时间应提前2~4周,且需适当增加播种密度及提高底肥水平以增加饲草生产;为补偿饲草转移造成的氮亏缺,需在利用后适当添加氮肥以维持其籽粒生产。4)为保证粮饲兼用的效益优势,麦类作物粮饲兼用更适宜于在较湿润的地区(年降水量350~500 mm)开展。本文可为我国深入开展麦类作物粮饲兼用研究提供理论基础,并将进一步指导粮饲兼用措施的应用及推广。     

牦牛和藏羊混合放牧对放牧家畜采食量和植物补偿性生长的影响

为探究放牧方式对青藏高原高寒草地家畜的采食量和植物补偿生长的影响,本试验在环青海湖流域高寒草地设置放牧方式（牦牛单独放牧、藏羊单独放牧、牦牛和藏羊1：2混牧、牦牛和藏羊1：4混牧、牦牛和藏羊1：6混牧）控制试验,以期确定草地的承载力,并为制定合理的草地管理措施提供依据。试验结果表明：在群落水平上,家畜的采食量在藏羊（Ovis aries）单独放牧以及牦牛（Bos grunniens）与藏羊1：2混牧方式下,显著高于其他方式（P<0.05）;在功能群水平上,藏羊单独放牧与牦牛和藏羊1：2混牧这2种放牧方式下家畜对豆科植物的采食量较高;藏羊单独放牧与牦牛和藏羊1：2混牧植物的补偿生长能力显著高于其他放牧方式（P<0.05）。研究表明：藏羊单独放牧时,其采食量最高;牦牛和藏羊1：2混牧的放牧方式对植物补偿性生长的促进作用最明显。因此,从放牧家畜采食量与植物补偿生长两方面考虑,在青藏高原高寒草地藏羊单独放牧与牦牛和藏羊1：2混牧的放牧方式较为合理。     

Functional Resource Heterogeneity Increases Livestock and Rangeland Productivity

Most of the world's rangelands are subject to large spatial and temporal variation in forage quantity and quality, which can have severe consequences for the stability and profitability of livestock production. Adaptive foraging movements between functional seasonal resources can help to ameliorate the destabilizing effects on herbivore body stores of spatial and temporal variability of forage quantity and quality. Functional dry-season habitats (key resources) provide sufficient nutrients and energy to minimize reliance on body stores and are critical for maintaining population stability by buffering the effects of drought. Functional wet-season habitats dominated by short, nutritious grasses facilitate optimal intake of nutrients and energy for lactating females, for optimal calf growth rates and for building body stores. Adaptive foraging responses to high-quality focal patches induced by rainfall and disturbance further facilitate intake of nutrients and energy. In addition, focused grazing impact in high-quality patches helps to prevent grassland maturing and losing quality. In this regard, the design of many rotational grazing systems is conceptually flawed because of their inflexible movement of livestock that does not allow adaptation to spatial and temporal variability in forage quantity and quality or sufficient duration of stay in paddocks for livestock to benefit from self facilitation of grazing. Similarly the fixed intraseasonal resting periods of most rotational grazing systems might not coincide with the key pulses of nitrogen mineralization and rainfall in the growing season, which can reduce their efficiency in providing a functional recovery period for grazed grasses. This might explain why complex rotational grazing systems on average have not out-performed continuous grazing systems. It follows, therefore, that ranchers need to adopt flexible grazing management practices that allow adaptation to spatial and temporal variability in forage quantity and quality, allow facilitation of grazing (season-long grazing), and allow more effective recovery periods (season-long resting).     

新疆半干旱地区不同种类混播草地的牧草产量和营养价值研究

提高混播草地的生产力和维持其营养价值对提高新疆半干旱地区放牧家畜生产力具有重要意义。本研究选择4种牧草,以单播为对照,设置豆禾两种牧草和3种牧草进行混播,分析混播草地生产力和牧草营养价值变化。结果表明：与单播相比,混播草地不仅具有明显生物量优势,而且牧草的酸性洗涤纤维和中性洗涤纤维含量更低,粗蛋白含量、干物质消化率、干物质采食量和相对饲喂价值更高;随着生长年限的增加（2016年到2018年）,单播和混播草地牧草干物质产量、粗蛋白产量、酸性洗涤纤维、中性洗涤纤维含量均显著增加,但粗蛋白含量、干物质消化率、干物质采食量和相对饲喂价值均显著下降。     

放牧家畜养分消化率的测定

放牧家畜养分消化率反映牧草供给量和营养品质、家畜的健康状况以及生产性能等，是草原管理的关键指标之一。放牧家畜养分消化率的测定方法主要有直接测定和间接估测两种，直接法包括全收粪法、指示剂法、近红外光谱法（NIRS）等，间接法主要有体内或体外发酵法、牧草品质和气候等预测法。全收粪法是较精确的测定方法，然而耗时、费力，对家畜放牧行为有较大影响，难以体现牧场饲草供给的空间异质性；指示剂法根据不溶物的回收比例估测养分消化率，对家畜放牧行为干扰较小，指示剂不易收集，也不适于野性较高的放牧动物；NIRS法效率高、劳动强度低、成本小、不影响家畜，能够大尺度地估测放牧家畜的养分消化率，需要大量的实测数据完善预测模型；气候估测法快捷、省时，精确性较差，适于大时空尺度。放牧家畜的养分消化率与家畜、草地、放牧方法、温度、降水等生物因子，环境因子和社会因子密切相关，与遥感、无人机（UAV）和人工智能等结合，可以准确、快速地测定放牧家畜养分消化率，为草地生态修复与健康管理提供支撑。     

Patterns of Vegetation and Climatic Conditions Derived from Satellite Images Relevant for Sub-Antarctic Rangeland Management

Sub-Antarctic rangelands are characterized by weather seasonality and abundant winter snowfall. These climate factors determine most livestock management decisions. Nonetheless, data on these weather patterns are only available for some areas of the region, and management is entirely empirically-derived. The aim of this study was twofold: to compile spatial and temporal environmental information of rangelands in the Magallanes Region of Chile by using satellite images and to provide an example for local purposes through a simple evaluation of current grazing systems of four ranches in central Tierra del Fuego using satellite-derived image products and a known thermal comfort zone for sheep. To determine the environmental conditions of the region, we processed a 12-year (2000–2011) series of three MODIS-Terra platform products: Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) as an index of photosynthetic activity, snow cover index, and Land Surface Temperature (LST). Results indicate that data obtained from satellite images follow the known seasonality of the region and deliver spatial and temporal environmental information (e.g., temperature at large scale) for most ranching areas of the region where it was formerly unavailable. The determined grazing period of analyzed ranches for winter range was May 8 to September 29. These tools show promise to encourage management innovation from simple applications to combine platforms and models for forage monitoring and ranch management in Sub-Antarctic rangelands.