Sierra Nevada grasslands: interactions between livestock grazing and ecosystem structure and function

Livestock grazing plays an integral role in the grass-dominated ecosystems of the Sierra Nevada. Grazing has been asserted to influence such key ecological characteristics as water quality, net primary productivity, nutrient cycling, plant and animal diversity, wildlife habitat availability, and oak regeneration (Belsky and others 1999, Kauffmann and Krueger 1984)....

Response of mountain meadows to grazing by recreational pack stock

Effects of recreational pack stock grazing on mountain meadows in Yosemite National Park were assessed in a 5-year study. Yosemite is a designated wilderness, to be managed such that its natural conditions are preserved. Studies were conducted in 3 characteristic meadow types: shorthair sedge (Carex filifolia Nutt.), Brewer’s reed grass (...

Implications of longer term rest from grazing in the sagebrush steppe

Longer term grazing rest has occurred or been proposed in large portions of the sagebrush steppe based on the assumption that it will improve ecosystem properties. However, information regarding the influence of longer term rest from grazing is limited and has not been summarized. We synthesized the scientific literature on long-term rest in the sagebrush steppe to...

Willow establishment in relation to cattle grazing on an eastern Oregon stream

Natural regeneration and growth of coyote willow (Salix exigua Nutt. ssp. exigua) and whiplash willow (S. lasiandra Bemth. var. caudata [Nutt.] Sudw.) were monitored from 1987 to 1993 on a low-elevation eastern Oregon stream degraded by more than a century of heavy livestock grazing. Treatments were no grazing, moderate spring grazing, moderate fall grazing, and...

Estimating influence of stocking regimes on livestock grazing distributions

Livestock often concentrate grazing in particular regions of landscapes while partly or wholly avoiding other regions. Dispersing livestock from the heavily grazed regions is a central challenge in grazing land management. Position data gathered from GPS-collared livestock hold potential for increasing knowledge of factors driving livestock aggregation patterns, but...

Response of native versus exotic plant guilds to cattle and elk herbivory in forested rangeland

Questions: Are exotic plant species favoured by non-native ungulate herbivores and disadvantaged by native herbivores in forested rangelands? Do the impacts of ungulates on exotic vs native plants depend on forest management activities such as prescribed fire and stand thinning?

Location: Northeastern Oregon, USA.

Grazing in central hardwood forests

Woodland grazing is a major forestry and land management problem in parts of the central hardwood region. Most forest grazing is by cattle and, to a lesser extent, hogs in woodlands adjacent to pastures or feedlots. The practice is particularly common in the cattle producing areas of the Corn Belt where often 50 percent or more of the upland forest is grazed. Woodland...

Rehabilitation of an oak planting project on cleared rangeland using treeshelters and grazing: a ten-year saga

On a 2-hectare site at the Sierra Foothill Research and Extension Center near Marysville, California, 1,440 blue oaks (Quercus douglasii) were planted during 1990-91 in an attempt to re-vegetate an oak woodland that had been almost totally cleared for cattle grazing during the mid-1960s. This initial planting of acorns, 4-month old seedlings, and 1-...

Trajectory and rate of desert vegetation response following cattle removal

Cattle have grazed continuously over the past three centuries in the Sky Island region and most work has focused on how these grazers have affected riparian and grassland habitats. I examined the effects of grazing on a fuller spectrum of desert habitats that occur in the close proximity to the San Bernardino Valley of Mexico and the United States. Plots in each of...