A social-ecological typology of rangelands based on rainfall variability and farming type

Engler, John-Oliver; Abson, David J.; Feller, Robert L.; Hanspach, Jan; Wehrden, Henrik von

doi:10.1016/j.jaridenv.2017.09.009

Cited by 16 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…The commercial system is characterized by livestock farmers who produce cattle or mixed herds of goats, pigs, and poultry, or by agricultural producers with a larger agricultural area than the regional mean, or by a combination of both strategies. In order to confirm the commercial nature of this category, it can be seen that these clusters (cluster 6, cluster 8, and cluster 9) reported more suppliers than the regional mean and more customers than the groups included in the subsistence category, which is consistent with previous studies in which entrepreneurial producers are oriented towards commercial systems [34]. Nine percent of the production units in this study belong to this category.…”

Section: Commercial Systemssupporting

confidence: 90%

Production System Diversification and Livelihood in the Drylands of North Central Mexico

et al. 2019

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Drylands (arid and semi-arid regions) are important regions in the world; they have been disregarded and considered poor undeveloped regions due to their ecological limitations. Farmers in these regions tend towards diversification of production systems in order to achieve livelihood security, and this phenomenon has not been extensively studied. The objective of this study was to create a typology of the production systems present in the Mexican north central drylands, using variables related to production, socioeconomics, and social capital. 1044 interviews were conducted in the semi-arid region of north central Mexico. Analysis of the data allowed for the observation of nine types of production systems distributed in three groups: Subsistence, commercial, and off-farm income systems. The differences observed within these systems are due to generational gaps, gender differences, market orientation, and social capital. It can be concluded that the diversification of the dryland production systems allows for an understanding of why generic public policies have failed to mitigate poverty in these regions. The implications of the study refer to the reconfiguration of Mexican policies for the development of the drylands.

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Section: Commercial Systemssupporting

confidence: 90%

Production System Diversification and Livelihood in the Drylands of North Central Mexico

et al. 2019

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“…Rangeland management in an equilibrium system (such as Harshin district) is based on Clementsian succession theory (Clements, ) and is implemented by controlling livestock numbers below the level that would cause degradation of the ecosystem (i.e., the carrying capacity), while maximizing the productivity of the livestock (Caughley, ). On the other hand, Engler et al () and Vetter () reported that management of African rangelands has generally followed the equilibrium model and the assumption that high number of livestock can lead to overgrazing. Thereby, government interventions include destocking schemes, conversion of communal areas into individually tenures, and settling of nomadic pastoralists into group farmers (resettlements) (Archer, Hoffman, & Danckwerts, ; Ellis & Swift, ; Rohde, Hoffman, & Cousins, ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The grassland and browse in the pastoral areas of Africa are characterized by low levels of productivity and high variability in yields, both within and across years (De Leeuw & Tothill, ; Maass, Musale, Chiuri, Gassner, & Peters, ). Evidence from arid environments (e.g., Mongolia, Syria, and Western Australia) with high rainfall coefficients of variability (CV) suggests that these systems are well described by the nonequilibrium model (Engler, Abson, Feller, Hanspach, & Wehrden, ; Ward, Ngairorue, Kathena, Samuels, & Ofran, ). However, Vetter () reported that most African rangelands have interannual rainfall variability of less than 33%; hence, the management generally followed the principle of equilibrium systems and the assumption that these systems are overstocked and degraded.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Estimating carrying capacity and stocking rates of rangelands in Harshin District, Eastern Somali Region, Ethiopia

Meshesha

Moahmmed

Yosuf

2019

Ecology and Evolution

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We conducted a quantitative assessment of forage biomass in Harshin district to determine its annual productive potential, carrying capacity, and stocking rates. The dominant Land Use and Land Cover include woodland (35.5%), shrubs (28.3%), grassland (10.6%), and bare land (25.5%). The region has browse‐rich shrubland that is edible to dromedary and goats, as well as massive grassland plains for sheep and cattle. The interannual rainfall variation is 16.5% which implies that the rangeland is a subsistence equilibrium system. The range of forage production is between 105 and 2,310 kg/ha, whereas the average productivity of the district is 742.6 kg/ha. The result indicates that the average carrying capacity of the district is 0.3 TLU ha−1 year−1 (4.9 ha TLU−1 year−1) while the existing stocking rate is 5.4 TLU ha−1 year−1 (0.18 ha TLU−1 year−1). This implies that the grazing intensity in the district is much higher than its carrying capacity (recommended rate), which has seen overstocking or grazing pressure excesses of 5.1 TLU/ha (7.2 cattle/ha). Thus, it clearly signals the risk of overgrazing in the district. If this trend continues, the grazing will not be sustainable and there will be shortage of forage as well as expansion of land degradation (due to overgrazing) in the near future.

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“…Cada estrategia está encaminada a mejorar el estado actual de los productores de tuna, mediante acciones que permitan incrementar el volumen de producción de tuna ligado al adecuado manejo de las plantaciones, así como, incrementar la calidad de fruto, fortalecer las relaciones interpersonales y la vinculación con productores foráneos con la intención de ampliar el mercado. La caracterización de productores y la diversidad de grupos formados permitió idear técnicas de intervención dirigidas a cada grupo, ya que de acuerdo con Engler et al (2017) existen medidas que pueden funcionar para un sistema, pero no para otro. Del mismo modo, Dalogly et al (2014) demostró que los tipos de productores representan diferentes prácticas y políticas de conservación y esto obedece a ciertos atributos que pueden ser más factibles para introducir nuevos conocimientos y prácticas de manejo (Köbrich et al, 2003).…”

Section: Resultados Y Discusiónunclassified

Tipología de productores de nopal tunero en Pinos, Zacatecas

Mendoza-Orozco

Flores

Méndez-Gallego

2019

Remexca

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La tipificación de productores es importante para el diseño, implementación y aplicación eficiente de políticas, programas y estrategias dirigidas a grupos específicos. Los agricultores de Pinos, Zacatecas tienen como principal fuente de ingreso económico el cultivo de tuna. Estos productores reciben apoyos económicos gubernamentales; sin embargo, los beneficios no se han visto reflejados en el adecuado desarrollo y productividad de sus huertas. Con la finalidad de que dichos apoyos se distribuyan priorizando las necesidades de los productores, se planteó identificar las formas de producir tuna basadas en la edad y actividades de los productores y en las relaciones de apoyo que establecen. Para ello, se aplicó una encuesta a 38 productores en noviembre de 2014. Mediante un análisis multivariado, una correlación de variables y un análisis de componentes principales (CP) se determinaron grupos de productores con características distintivas. Se generaron 10 tipos de productores de tuna (r2 de 0.69) basadas en 4 CP: la edad y el ingreso por cultivar tuna son las variables más determinantes (25% de la variación), el rendimiento de tuna (17%), el ingreso por una actividad complementaria (15%) y la relación con socios en la producción (12%). Se identificaron como necesidades prioritarias para el desarrollo de la actividad tunera, incrementar el rendimiento de producción, así como crear y fortalecer vínculos con productores locales y foráneos. La tipificación de productores permite priorizar y agilizar la distribución de apoyos a los grupos más vulnerables. Es prioridad diseñar estrategias que mejoren la productividad y calidad de la tuna y ampliar su comercialización.

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A social-ecological typology of rangelands based on rainfall variability and farming type

Cited by 16 publications

References 44 publications

Production System Diversification and Livelihood in the Drylands of North Central Mexico

Production System Diversification and Livelihood in the Drylands of North Central Mexico

Estimating carrying capacity and stocking rates of rangelands in Harshin District, Eastern Somali Region, Ethiopia

Tipología de productores de nopal tunero en Pinos, Zacatecas

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