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Abstract
This chapter provides a general review of grazing disturbance by large mammalian grazers and the role of ecological context in moderating its effects, with emphasis on North American deserts. It discusses the ecological consequences of cessation of livestock grazing and present a case study from the Mojave Desert, United States of America. A primary effect of grazing is selective removal and ingestion of herbaceous plants, in contrast to removal of woody biomass from woody plants by browsing herbivores. The consequences of grazing–and resilience of a system to grazing disturbance–are highly context-dependent and vary across rangelands globally. Synergistic interactions between soil depth and plant structural properties, such as rooting depth and water-use efficiency, also influence plant access to water, and therefore moderate plant responses to drought and resilience to grazing. In some ecosystems, livestock grazing constitutes a novel or intensified disturbance. Application of the Intermediate Disturbance Hypothesis to grazing disturbance has been relatively infrequently tested relative to other ecological disturbances.
Study Area
| Publication type | Book chapter |
|---|---|
| Publication Subtype | Book Chapter |
| Title | Context-dependent effects of livestock grazing in deserts of western North America |
| Year Published | 2020 |
| Language | English |
| Publisher | CRC Press |
| Contributing office(s) | Forest and Rangeland Ecosys Science Center, Northern Rocky Mountain Science Center |
| Description | 26 p. |
| Larger Work Type | Book |
| Larger Work Subtype | Monograph |
| Larger Work Title | Disturbance ecology and biological diversity: Scale, context, and nature |
| First page | 89 |
| Last page | 113 |
| Country | United States |
| State | California, Nevada |
| Other Geospatial | Mojave Desert |
| Google Analytic Metrics | Metrics page |