Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 23, 2026
05:55
How to Create Conditioned Taste Aversion for Grazing Ground Covers in Woody Crops with Small Ruminants
Published on: April 30, 2016
Rangeland utilization in Mediterranean farming systems
M Jouven1, P Lapeyronie, C-H Moulin
11Montpellier SupAgro, MPRS, UMR ERRC, 2 place Pierre Viala, F-34060 Montpellier, France.
Animal : an International Journal of Animal Bioscience
|March 27, 2012
Summary
Mediterranean rangelands face degradation due to changing livestock grazing practices. Promoting adaptive management that leverages animal behavior is key to balancing animal production and rangeland preservation.
Area of Science:
- Ecology
- Animal Science
- Agricultural Science
Background:
- Rangelands in the Mediterranean basin are vital semi-natural grazing lands characterized by heterogeneous vegetation and harsh environments.
- Traditional livestock grazing practices are declining due to socio-economic changes, leading to rangeland degradation (underutilization in Southern Europe, overutilization in Northern Africa).
Purpose of the Study:
- To analyze the challenges of rangeland utilization in Mediterranean livestock farming systems.
- To propose management strategies that reconcile rangeland preservation with animal production.
Main Methods:
- A comprehensive review of scientific literature on Mediterranean rangeland utilization.
- Analysis of socio-economic factors impacting traditional grazing practices.
Main Results:
- Current socio-economic contexts render traditional grazing practices unsustainable.
- Rangeland degradation is a significant issue across the Mediterranean basin due to altered utilization patterns.
Conclusions:
- Reconciling animal production and rangeland preservation requires promoting management practices that enhance animals' adaptive capacities in feeding and production.
- Future research should focus on vegetation characterization, foraging behavior validation, simulation modeling for management strategies, and evaluating modern technologies for improved rangeland utilization.
Related Concept Videos
00:48Optimal Foraging
How animals obtain and eat their food is called foraging behavior. Foraging can include searching for plants and hunting for prey and depends on the species and environment.
02:02Responses to Salt Stress
Salt stress—which can be triggered by high salt concentrations in a plant’s environment—can significantly affect plant growth and crop production by influencing photosynthesis and the absorption of water and nutrients.
02:35Key Elements for Plant Nutrition
Like all living organisms, plants require organic and inorganic nutrients to survive, reproduce, grow and maintain homeostasis. To identify nutrients that are essential for plant functioning, researchers have leveraged a technique called hydroponics. In hydroponic culture systems, plants are grown—without soil—in water-based solutions containing nutrients. At least 17 nutrients have been identified as essential elements required by plants. Plants acquire these elements from the atmosphere, the...
02:31Habitat Fragmentation
Habitat fragmentation describes the division of a more extensive, continuous habitat into smaller, discontinuous areas. Human activities such as land conversion, as well as slower geological processes leading to changes in the physical environment, are the two leading causes of habitat fragmentation. The fragmentation process typically follows the same steps: perforation, dissection, fragmentation, shrinkage, and attrition.
01:46The Calvin Benson Cycle
Ribulose 1,5- bisphosphate carboxylase/oxygenase (RuBisCo) is a critical enzyme that catalyzes carbon dioxide assimilation during photosynthesis. However, it is an inefficient enzyme, having an extremely slow catalytic rate. A typical enzyme can process about a thousand molecules per second; however, RuBisCo fixes only around three-carbon dioxides per second. Photosynthetic cells compensate for this slow rate by synthesizing very high amounts of RuBisCo, making it the most abundant single...