A Study Shows Cattle
Grazing May Help Endangered Species
October 12, 2005, by Ayinde O. Chase -
All Headline News Staff WriterCentral
Valley, Ca (AHN) - An article published
in the latest issue of Conservation
Biology states cattle grazing plays
an important role in maintaining wetland
habitat necessary for some endangered
species.
Removing cattle from grazing lands in
the Central Valley of California could,
inadvertently, degrade the vernal pool
habitat of fairy shrimp and tiger
salamanders.
Cattle grazing affects the rate of
evaporation, which works together with
the climate to determine the depth and
duration of wetland flooding.
Cattle have been feeding on the land
for over 150 years and have found a way
to be a naturalized part of the
ecosystem. Author Christopher R. Pyke
states, "In practical terms, this means
that grazing may help sustain the kinds
of aquatic environments endangered fairy
shrimps need to survive."
The experiments showed removal of
grazing reduced the duration of wetland
flooding by an average of 50 days per
year.
Their simulations show that climate
change could compound these impacts,
potentially, leaving endangered fairy
shrimp and tiger salamanders without
enough time to mature before their
temporary aquatic environments
disappear.
Pyke adds, "Consequently, land
managers can play an important role in
climate change impacts, i.e. they can
exacerbate or ameliorate, the local
impacts of global change."
Conservationists may find grazing is
not always a negative factor, and it
presents real opportunities to adapt to
climate variability and climate change. |