RANGE MANAGEMENT: DEFINITION

Rangelands - All areas of the world that are not barren deserts, farmed, or
covered by bare soil, rock, ice, or concrete can be classified as such.
Rangeland – uncultivated land that will provide the necessities of life for grazing
and browsing animals.

Grazing – consumption of standing forage (edible grasses or forbs) by livestock.

Browsing – the consumption of edible leaves and twigs from woody plants (trees
and shrubs).

Pasturelands – are distinguished from rangelands by the fact that periodic

cultivation is used to maintain introduced forage species, and agronomic inputs such as
irrigation and fertilization are applied manually.

Range management – Range Management is a distinct discipline founded on

ecological principles and dealing with the use of rangelands and range resources for a
variety of purposes. These purposes include use as watersheds, wildlife habitat, grazing
by livestock, recreation, and aesthetics, as well as other associated uses.
is a science and art of obtaining maximum livestock production from rangelands
that is in consistent with the conservation of land resources.
2 basic components:
1. Protecting and enhancing the soil and vegetation complex
2. Maintaining or improving the output consumable range products such as red
meat, fiber, wood, water and wildlife

Objective of Range Management

The following are working objectives of range management:
1. To obtain maximum livestock production from the rangelands.
2. To maintain adequate vegetation or of good quality forage to prevent soil
erosion.
3. To achieve efficient utilization of the forage produced.
4. To conserve water to support watersheds.
5. To support wildlife for games and other recreational activities.

Branches of Range Management

1. Grazing management –
2. Pasture management – an art of securing the maximum quantity of nutritious
and digestible plants distributed as widely as possible over the grazing season and
ensure the efficient utilization of forage produced.
3. Livestock management – an art of securing and controlling the number and
kind of livestock and their distribution in relation to the availability of the forage.
4. Range hydrology – the study of the hydrological principles as applied to range
ecosystem.
5. Range Ecology – the study of the interactions or responses of plant
population to its environment.
II. Basic Concepts Of Range Management
1. Rangeland is renewable resource
2. Energy from the sun can be captured by green plants that can only be
harvested by the grazing animal.
3. Rangelands supply humans with food and fiber at very low energy costs
compared to those associated with cultivated lands.
4. Rangeland productivity is determined by the characteristics of the soil,
topography, and climate.
5. A variety of “products” including food, fiber, water, recreation, wildlife,
minerals and timber are harvested from rangelands.

Relationship of Range Management to other science.

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RANGELAND
Rangeland is a natural grassland or shrubland that is unsuited for cultivation and
which is the source of forage for tree ranging native and domestic animals, as well as
the source of wood products, water and wildlife.

A. Importance of Rangelands
a. Provide food for the livestock
b. Provide food and habitat for wild animals
c. Stabilize soil
d. Contribute to soil development
e. Recreational area
f. Provide environmental and landscape amenities
g. Provide a multiple of uses

B. Range Condition and Suitability

1. Primary Range
Primary range is a part of the rangeland in which livestock prefer to graze under
minimum management practices.
2. Secondary Range
Secondary range is a part of the rangeland which is slightly used when primary
range is overused.
3. Transitory Range
It is a part of the rangeland which is usually open temporarily because of fire or
other phenomena.
4. Unsuitable Range
It is a part of the rangeland composed of rocky areas, ravines, barren areas, etc.

C. Physical and Vegetational Characteristics of Rangeland

The characteristics of Rangeland Landscapes are determined by 5 basic
"controlling factors" such as the following:
a. Climate
b. Organisms
c. Parent materials
d. Topography
e. Time
These characteristics that influences the physical and vegetational condition of a
rangeland in turn produce 5 basic "dependent factors" of the landscape such as:
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a. Vegetation
b. Consumers
c. Decomposers
d. Soil
e. Microclimate

D. Rangeland Physical Characteristic

 Precipitation
o Drought – prolonged dry weather, generally when precippitaion is
less than 75% of the average annual amount.
 Wind – caused by uneven heating of land and water areas as the erath
turns on its axis.
 Temperature
 Humidity – amount of moisture in air.
o Relative humidity – percentage of the maximum quantity of
moisture that the air can hold at the prevailing temperature.
 Climatic type
 Topography
o Aspect – refers to the directional orientation of slopes.
o Degree of slope –
 Soils
o Soil texture – the size of the mineral particles comprising the soil.
o Soil structure – how soil particles are arranged.
o Soil ph – indicates the status of the soil in regard to exchangeable
mineral ions.
o Soil depth – deep soil produce more forage than thin.
o Organic matter

.
3. Vegetational Characteristics of Rangeland

The interactions of physical characteristics determine the limits of productivity.

Vegetation consists of grasses, forbs, shrubs, and trees. Prairie was not planted, it
evolved, whereas grassland is any land upon which grasses predominate. Grasses
are responsible for most net primary production, thus most of livestock forage and
much of forage for wildlife.

Plant Morphology
Phytomer – basic unit of the grass plant. It consist of a leaf a node, an
auxillary bud, and internode.
Shoot – is a collective term applied to the stem and leaves of grasses. It
may be vegetative or reproductive and culmed or culmless.
Tillers – lateral vegetative shoots growing upward within the enclosed leaf
sheath.
Stolons – lateral shoots that grow along the soil surface.
Rhizomes – underground culm
The vegetation in the rangeland is generally categorized into:
1. Grassland – a plant community predominantly composed of grasses, belonging to
the family Graminae. Grasses comprises 16% of earths total land area.
Grasses are distinguished by having hollow, jointed stems; fine, naroow leaves
with large parallel veins; and fibrous root system.
Forbs – are non-grasslike plants with taproots, generally broad leaves with
netlike veins and solid, nonjointed stems.
Sedges – grasslike plants have leaves and fibrous roots like true grasses but
differ in having nonjointed solid stem.

a. Natural Grassland
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a.1. Grass Steppe – a natural grassland which consists of almost entirely

grasses with no legumes and with very few herbs present.
a.2. Desert Scrub – a natural grassland in which the cover consists of
annuals which appear after heavy rain.
a.3. Prairie – a natural grassland in which the cover consists of different
speices of grasses wherein trees are entirely absent
a.4. Meadow – a natural grassland in which the cover consists of grasses,
with mixture of shrubs, sedges, and forbs.
a.5. Savanna – a natural grassland which has more or less complete grass
cover with scattered trees interspersed throughout the area.

b. Artificial Grassland

b.1. Pastureland – a cultivated grassland for forage production.

2. Shrubland – a plant community predominantly composed of shrubs.

a. Shrub Steppe – a natural grassland which is covered with low-growing shrubs
often not more than 90 cm. tall.
b. Scrub – a natural shrubland in which is dominated by shrubs.

Growth Form
a. Grass – any of a large group of plants with jointed stems (culms) and with
narrow, long, and slender leaves
b. Vine – a non-woody climbing plant
c. Shrub – a woody perennial plant that seldom exceeds five meters in height
in a given locality and usually has a number of stems.

Ecology of Grassland
The stages of progression are as follows:

a. Bare Soil
b. Grasses
c. Shrubs (Bramble, hawthorn and Blackthorn)
d. Forest species eliminate shrubs by their shading effect.

Intensive grazing prevents this series of activities to take place.

􀂑This is because grass species can regenerate from points below the grazing level.
􀂑If grazing was reduced or stopped, shrubs would take over and then eventually
trees.
􀂑This is important as the farmer must manage his / her grassland so as to ensure that
unwanted
shrubs don’t take over the area.

agricultural importance of any grassland is measured in three ways :

Productivity refers to the ability of a grass to produce large amount of herbage.
􀂑It also refers to the ability to respond to a fertilizer.
Palatability refers to taste etc, in other words how appealing the grass is!
􀂑Sheep and cattle are selective eaters and will only eat the most palatable grass.
Digestibility is a rating of the ability of an animal to digest a certain feed.
􀂑It is measured in terms of DMD (Dry Matter Digestibility) – how much of the dry
matter the animal can digest.
􀂑Digestibility of grass varies throughout the grass’s year also.
􀂑Before flowering the DMD may be 80 – 90%, and after flowering as little as 50%.

E. Grazing Frequency and Palatability

1. Increaser – unpalatable species
2. Decreaser – palatable species
3. Intermediate – a substitute species if palatable species is absent.
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a. Grazing Resistance
Ambiguous term used to refer to the relative ability of plants to survive being
grazed. Grazing and environmental selection pressure equipped plants with a great
variety of form and function.
2 Basic categories:
1. avoidance mechanism- reduce the probability and severity of plant
defoliation
2. tolerance mechanism- facilitate growth following defoliation.
Grazing resistance
(mechanisms enabling plants to
survive in grazed system

Avoidance (mechanisms Tolerance (mechanisms

that reduce the probability that increase growth
of grazing) following grazing)

Morphological Biochemical Morphological Physiological

characteristic compounds characteristics characteristics

Rank order of ecological plant groups (greatest grazing resistance to least)

1. Herbaceous monocots
2. Herbaceous dicots
3. Deciduous shrubs and trees
4. Evergreen shrubs and trees

Possible Effects of Grazing Intensity on Range Plant Physiology

Negative (Heavy Intensity) Positive (light to moderate intensity)

1. Decreased photosynthesis. 1.
Increased photosynthesis.
2. Reduced carbohydrate storage. 2.
Increased tillering.
3. Reduced root growth. 3.
Reduced shading.
4. Reduced seed production. 4.
Reduced transpiration losses.
5. Reduced ability to compete with 5.
Inoculation of plant parts with growth-
ungrazed plants. promoting substances.
6. Reduced mulch accumulation. This 6. Reduction of excessive mulch
decreases soil water infiltration and accumulations that may physically and
retention. Mulch is also necessary to chemically inhibit vegetative growth.
prevent soil erosion. Excessive mulch can provide habitat
for pathogens and insects that can
damage forage plants.
GRAZING RESISTANCE

Avoidance Tolerance

Features that reduce the likelihood of Features that facilitate growth following
being grazed (ie., escape mechanisms) defoliation (ie. rapid leaf growth)

Mechanical Biochemical Morphological Physiological

 Tissue  Qualitative  Rapid Leaf  Compensatory

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 Accesibility Secondary Replacement Photosynthesis

 Mechanical Compounds  Intercallary  Carbon Allocation
Deterrents  Quantitative Growth  Carbohydrate
 Epidermal Secondary  Basal Axillary Reserves
Attributes Compounds  Budding  Water
 Leaf Anatomy  Inducible Conservation
Defenses  Root Growth
 Apical
Dominance
 Compensatory
Growth

Herbage Selectivity or Preference

Selectivity of herbage expresses the degree to which animals harvest plants or
plant parts differently from random removal. The following expressions are:
1. Actual Use – the percentage of herbage from a pasture.

2. Proper Use – the percentage of herbage that should have been removed with
ideal grazing (Synonymous to proper utilization).

Chemical Composition of Leafy Plants

1. Crude Protein
2. Crude Fiber
3. Digestible Protein
4. Starch

Changing Characteristic of the Grazing Animals

Classes of Grazing Animals Based on their Growing Stage

1. Bull- an uncastrated male cattle of any age with animal unit of 1.25
2. Stag – a male cattle castrated after he has developed the physical
characteristics of a mature bull with animal unit of 0.75.
3. Steer – a male cattle castrated at an early age before reaching sexual
maturity with an animal unit of 0.75.
4. Cow - a mature female cattle that has had one or more calves with an animal
unit of 1.0.

5. Heiferette – a female cattle that has not had more than one calf or it is a
young cow with an animal unit of 0.75.
6. Heifer – a female cattle that has not develop the mature form of the cow,
usually three years old with an animal unit of 0.75.
7. Yearling – a cattle between the ages of one year old and two years old with
an animal unit of 0.50.
8. Calf – a cattle with an age of one year old and below with an animal unit of
0.25.

STOCKING RATES & CAPACITY -

 Grazing Pressure - ratio of forage demand (stocking rate) to forage availability

(carrying capacity) i.e., demand/supply ratio
 Carrying Capacity - highest intensity of grazing that can be supported without
inducing deterioration of range resources. CC is a function of current vegetational
attributes mediated by previous management practices, physiography, soil,
parent material, and climate.
- Is the stocking rate that achieves a targeted level of animal or economic
performance over a defined period of time without causing deterioration of
the pasture ecosystem.
Refers to the forage capacity of various pastures.
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-
 Stocking Rate - for a given period of time, the number of animals of a given size
per unit area or the reciprocal thereof: e.g., 3.5 acre/head/6 mo = 0.1429
head/acre/yr.
Is the number of animals stocked per acre of grazing land in a
management unit for a defined period of time.
 Grazing Capacity – is the maximum number of individual animals that can
survive the given period of time on a given land.

Thus there are 4 components required to express a stocking rate:

a. Duration of the grazing period (aka, time)
b. Number of animals
c. Average size of the animals
d. Amount of area accessible to grazing

Formula for Grazing Capacity:

AW P
K= f K= f
c or c
Where K is the Grazing Capacity, A is the area, W is the weight of herbage, C is
the animal feed requirement per animal unit per year which is equivalent to 25,000 kg,
P is the forage production and f is the utilization factor equivalent to 54%.

Formula specified in FLGMA

.54 ( S ) x A x 10,000
GC =
25,000
Where:
GC = Grazing capacity
.54 = Utilization factor (average of 61% and 46% utilization factors for rainy and
dry seasons, respectively)
S = Average fresh weight (in kilos) of grasses per square meter in the sample
A = Effective grazing area (in ha)
10,000 = area of one hectare in square meter
25,000 = Average forage requirement of one a.u. per year in kilogram fresh
weight

A. Units of Grazing Animals

Animal Unit – is a measure of animal numbers by which kinds, classes, sizes and
ages are converted to an approximate common standard in relation to feed and forage
resources based on the equivalent of a mature cow. It is equivalent to 455 kg.
- Is used to described the stocking rate recommendation for various classes of
livestock.
Animal Unit Requirement – refers to the forage needed by an animal for one year.
Animal Unit Equivalent (AUE, a.k.a., AU) - expresses any combination of animals with a
dry matter forage demand of 12 kg/day.

Thus for example:

1 AU = 1,000-lb. cow, thus a 500-lb. animal = 0.5 AU (this is the so-called straight-
line method)
1 AU = (wt/1000)0.75, thus (500/1000) 0.75 = 0.59 AU (this is the so-called metabolic
weight method)
Animal Unit Month - expression of carrying capacity equivalent to the forage demand of
1 AU for 1 month. (head count x AU x months = AUM)
Stocking rate - is the single most important user-controlled factor in rangeland
management. It is the actual number of animals or animal units on a specific
area for a specific period of time, usually for a grazing season.
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Proper grazing pressure results in minimal impact on resources and maximal NET
profits.

Grazing Pressure affect many variables such as:

1. Water Cycle
2. Total Annual Forage Production
3. Livestock Production
4. Nutrition
5. Net Returns

Some Detectable Signs of Overuse:

1. Decreased individual animal performance (e.g., gain/head)
2. Reduced vegetative cover (e.g., increased proportion of ground in grazing
lawns; insufficient fuel to carry a fire)
3. Decreased biodiversity
4. Uniform appearance of landscape (no mixture of colors and textures, small
objects on ground not visible from 2-5 m away)
5. Increased runoff / decreased infiltration
6. Reduced NET profits from grazing

B. Forage Utilization
Forage utilization is the amount of plant materials consumed by the animals,
expressed as a percentage of the current herbage crop.

1. Kinds of Animal Feeds

a. Unharvested Feeds (Fodder)
1. Forage – denotes the total amount of range vegetation that is consumed by
livestock or other grazing animals.
2. Browse – refers to all wood plants fitted for food for cattle.
b. Harvested Feeds
1. Silage – chopped or crushed fodder stored in a clamp, pit, or soil to ferment
for use as animal feed. Fodder refers to those plants that are
harvested by man or machine for feedlot feeding to livestock.
2. Hay – denotes all grasses mowed and cured for fodder.
3. Roughage – any animal feeds containing relatively large amount of crude fiber
and low in total digestible nutrients on an air dry basis.
4. Concentrates – refer to those plant materials which have a comparatively high
in total digestible nutrients and low in fiber content.

C. Forage Production
1. Formula of Forage Production

a. Ps = Wp x Tp x A Where:

b. Ps =
W
x Tp x A W – total weight of forage
Np Np – total no. of plots
Tp – no. of plots in a hectare
A – total area
Ps – forage production
Wp – weight of forage per plot

D. Considerations of Seasonal Grazing

1. Range Readiness – that point in the plant growth cycle at which grazing may
begin without permanent damage to vegetation and soil
2. Grazing Season and Grazing Period
Grazing season – that portion of the year when grazing is feasible on a
specific area.
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Grazing period - that portion of the growing season within which grazing
actually occurs. It is the time span of actual grazing.
Types of Grazing According to Grazing Season and Period:
Grazing system terms
Deferment – involves delay of grazing of a pasture until the seed maturity of the
key forage species. This permits the better forage plants to gain vigor and reproduce.
Rest – range receives nonuse for a full year rather than just during the growth
period. This gives plants a longer period to recover from past grazing influences.
Rotation – involves the movement of livestock from pasture to another on
schedule basis.

1. Continuous Grazing – the period wherein grazing occurs during the whole period that
plants are growing as well as part or all of the dormancy period.
2. Deferred Grazing – the period wherein the range is not grazed until seed maturity is
assured and that it is grazed after its maturity.
3. Rotational Grazing – the period when the animals are moved from one compartment
to another on a scheduled basis.
4. Deferred-rotational Grazing – this emphasizes the rotation of non-grazing and
deferment of other areas.
5. Zero Grazing – cut and carry method.
6. Strip Grazing- This system involves the use of a movable electric fence, to give the
stock a fresh strip of leafy grass per day.
7. Spot Grazing