Vegetation cover and forb responses to cattle exclusion: Implications for pronghorn
-
-
Authors: M. R. Loeser, S. D. Mezulis, T. D. Sisk, and T. C. Theimer
Date: 2005
Journal: Rangeland Ecology & Management
Volume: 58
Number: 3
Pages: 234-238
Summary of Methods: Loeser et al. looked at the effects of removing cattle grazing on canopy cover, as it relates to pronghorn fawning habitat and forb abundance. The authors found no difference in the amount of cover or the abundance of forbs between grazed and ungrazed plots. They proposed three possibilities for their findings: 1) forbs increase in richness due to ground disturbances, 2) the grassland community may be relatively stable in response to this type of grazing, and 3) that livestock grazing, over the past century, has altered the grassland to what it is today and it may take more that 5 years to see a response.
Article Summary / Main Points: None
Vegetation Types:
MLRA Ecoregions:
Agrovoc Control Words: Riparian zones Rangelands Wildlife
Article Review Type: Refereed
Article Type: Experimental Research
Keywords: arizona grassland, grazing, horizontal cover, plant composition, plant cover, semiarid grassland
Annotation: Pastures were stocked with 1 cow-calf pair per ha for 20 days per year.
-
Get article
Cite article with DOI
-