Pasture for horses: an underestimated land use class in an urbanized and multifunctional area

Abstract

This paper investigates the spatial importance of horses in a multifunctional and urbanized area. The growing spatial importance of horses in the open space was already mentioned by different authors, but never quantifi ed before. In many countries, including Belgium, statistics on horses are only partly covered by agricultural data. As a consequence, the amount of space in use for horses, especially hobby horses, is largely unknown but may encompass a signifi cant area of the open space. Especially within the context of an increasing urbanization and growing demands on the remaining rural area, this evolution must not be neglected. A reliable quantifi cation of the space used by horses is therefore essential and is given in this research for the case study Flanders. According to the results of fi eldwork, about one-third of the pasture land in Flanders is used to keep horses. A qualitative analysis showed a higher horse density within the more urbanized areas with a fragmented agricultural area and a quantitative analysis showed negative associations between the presence of horses and (i) the distance to gardens, (ii) the parcel area and (iii) the distance to forest. Moreover, an internet survey assessed evolutions and motivations of horse owners to keep horses. The survey resulted in clear data on the fact that the number of horses is increasing. This is mainly motivated by recreational purposes. The majority of horsekeepers do not consider themselves to be part of the agricultural sector. These results, showing an intensifi ed competition for land between stakeholders in the open space of urbanized regions put new challenges for sustainable land use planning. The major challenges are (i) to avoid increasing functional and spatial fragmentation of rural landscapes, (ii) to assure enough space for societal necessity urgencies such as food or energy selfeffi ciency, (iii) to increase positive interactions of horse keeping with other sectors such as agriculture, nature conservation and others and (iv) to develop a proper visual and cultural landscape strategy, helping in setting up guidelines for fencing and other infrastructural elements that do not deteriorate the landscape character.

Using a Citizen Science Approach with German Horse Owners to Study the Locomotion Behaviour of Horses on Pasture

“…In an observational study of managed grasslands, paddocks grazed by horses were more species-rich and contained more indicator species for a 'high nature value' than paddocks grazed by cattle (Schmitz and Isselstein, submitted to this special issue). However, conflicts due to inappropriate grazing management by some horse farmers [21,22] are increasing, particularly in peri-urban regions. Experimental studies on agricultural grassland management with domestic horses are sparse [23][24][25][26].…”

“…Most of the knowledge on the equine locomotion behaviour, in particular, is derived from behaviour of feral horses in largely natural surroundings [27][28][29]. Anecdotal knowledge and observations of farmers question the applicability of those findings on domestic horses on pasture [21,22]. In comparison to other livestock, horses are well known for their specific and highly developed need for locomotion [30].…”

Measuring fragmentation of open space in urbanised Flanders: an evaluation of four methods

“…These lots are often difficult to access, making them less interesting for productive agriculture and more attractive for private users. Another recent study of Bomans et al (2011) analysed the spatial importance of the horse sector. Based on a random field survey they concluded that small parcels close to gardens and/or woods have a significantly higher chance to be used for (mainly private) horse keeping.…”

Putting domestic gardens on the agenda using empirical spatial data: The case of Flanders

“…Adding our work to studies collecting on spatial data of similar encroaching land uses, like the non-agricultural re-use of former agricultural buildings (Verhoeve et al, 2012) and horsification (Bomans et al, 2011a;Zasada, Berges, Hilgendorf, & Piorr, 2013), illustrates the importance of collecting empirical spatial data as a trigger to get them on the agendas of policy and research. Fragmentation and urbanization bring along challenging tasks in Europe (Tavares et al, 2012).…”