Assessment of grazing selectivity in relation to land cover: a comparison between sheep and goats

Hassidou, Maroua; Castro, José; Castro, Marina; El Aich, Ahmed

Publication

Assessment of grazing selectivity in relation to land cover: a comparison between sheep and goats

2016Conference object

dc.contributor.author	Hassidou, Maroua
dc.contributor.author	Castro, José
dc.contributor.author	Castro, Marina
dc.contributor.author	El Aich, Ahmed
dc.date.accessioned	2016-11-11T11:17:37Z
dc.date.available	2016-11-11T11:17:37Z
dc.date.issued	2016
dc.description.abstract	Each agroforestry system has developed differently to each ecological, economic and social region of the world. ln Portugal, the traditional agroforestry landscape of Terra Fria is a mosaic of very small patches of annual and perennial agriculture, shrub and woodlands. This patch diversity- composition and configuration - plays a vital role in supporting biodiversity. On the other hand, traditionallivestock systems are based on grazing itineraries searched for different functions- gathering and resting among others- on this landscape mosaic. These agroforestry systems can be considered as a sustainable landscape management which integrates agriculture, livestock and forest on the same land management base. Landscape attributes such as topography, land cover and land use patterns influence the organization of grazing circuits and patch selection. The comparison between land use territory and land use crossed by flocks can be seen as a result of grazing selectivity made by animais and shepherds. The analysis of grazing selectivity is carried out by calculating a selection ratio (SR) for each land cover type :% of land cover of grazing circuit/% of available land cover type. A SR of 1 means that and cover type is used in a random way; a SR lower than 1 means that land cover type is rejected and SR higher than1 means that that land cover type is preferred. We investigated the set of land use patches crossed by sheep and goats flocks during a year and we compare it to the landscape composition, in a village context. For each month, we calculated a Selectivity Index (SI) for each land use- annual crops, perennial crops, forests, pasture and natural grasslands and shrubs. Our results indicate that flock displacement patterns are related with the shepherd and animais perception of benefits and requirements. They are guided by a complex interpretation of land uses and expectations of profitsforage, shade o r circulation among patches- in function of environmental constraints and land use types occurring around villages. The seasonal variation of SR for each land use suggests that the itineraries vary along the year regarding the different needs of animais and the resources availability. Shepherds recognize this complexity and use them accordingly to manage the productivity of the system.	pt_PT
dc.identifier.citation	Hassidou, Maroua; Castro, José; Castro, Marina; El Aich, Ahmed (2016). Assessment of grazing selectivity in relation to land cover: a comparison between sheep and goats. In World Congress Silvo-Pastoral Systems 2016. Silvo-Pastoral Systems in a changing world: functions, management and people. ISBN 978-972-745-214-9	pt_PT
dc.identifier.isbn	978-972-745-214-9
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10198/13459
dc.language.iso	eng	pt_PT
dc.peerreviewed	yes	pt_PT
dc.publisher	Universidade de Évora, ICAAM, UEx, IUFRO	pt_PT
dc.rights.uri	http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/	pt_PT
dc.subject	NE Portugal	pt_PT
dc.subject	Agroforestry	pt_PT
dc.subject	Grazing selectivity	pt_PT
dc.subject	Shepherds	pt_PT
dc.title	Assessment of grazing selectivity in relation to land cover: a comparison between sheep and goats	pt_PT
dc.type	conference object
dspace.entity.type	Publication
oaire.citation.conferencePlace	Évora	pt_PT
oaire.citation.startPage	315	pt_PT
oaire.citation.title	World Congress Silvo-Pastoral Systems 2016. Silvo-Pastoral Systems in a changing world: functions, management and people. 27-30th September 2016	pt_PT
person.familyName	Castro
person.familyName	Castro
person.givenName	José
person.givenName	Marina
person.identifier	2303569
person.identifier.ciencia-id	8611-5EFE-2FCE
person.identifier.ciencia-id	6417-7D8D-FD7E
person.identifier.orcid	0000-0003-4987-8175
person.identifier.orcid	0000-0002-6368-8098
person.identifier.rid	B-5197-2016
person.identifier.scopus-author-id	57212000778
person.identifier.scopus-author-id	56612728000
rcaap.rights	openAccess	pt_PT
rcaap.type	conferenceObject	pt_PT
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