module 3-away from the range: other types of extensive livestock production

Question 1

what are Pastoralists

Answer 1

they are nomadic people with large, migratory herds and/or flocks grazing over communal lands. Inputs are limited to controlling the movement of animals over large areas to follow the natural feed supply

Question 2

why do pastoralists raise livestock

Answer 2

Typically, the pastoralist communities raise livestock for their own use and the production system is not market-driven

Question 3

what kind of lands are pastoralists employed

Answer 3

Pastoral systems are employed in areas where crop cultivation is limited due to low and unpredictable rainfall, steep terrain or extreme climatic conditions

Question 4

what species do pastoralists raise

Answer 4

Livestock species maintained by pastoralists include goats, sheep, cattle, camels, yaks, reindeer, vicunas, llamas and alpacas

Question 5

what countries does pastoralism occur

Answer 5

Pastoralism exists in a broad range of geographic areas encompassing all continents except Antarctica. Pastoralists inhabit the drylands of Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, mountainous regions of Asia and Latin America, and the tundra in circumpolar zones.

Question 6

where is a high concentration of pastoralism

Answer 6

The pastoralist system is extensively followed in many areas of the world, the highest concentration being in Africa where it is estimated that fifty million people are pastoralists and an additional 200 million are agro-pastoralists who integrate crop production and livestock herding

Question 7

how many livelihoods do pastoralism provide

Answer 7

Globally, pastoralism provides livelihoods for hundreds of millions of households and manages one billion animals; in the world’s poorest regions, pastoralism may provide the only source of income

Question 8

how much of the world’s meat is sourced by pastoralism

Answer 8

Approximately ten percent of the world’s meat production is provided by pastoralism

Question 9

how many animals does pastoralism manage

Answer 9

it manages one billion animals

Question 10

what are nomads

Answer 10

Highly mobile groups with no regular pattern of movement. No permanent place of residence. No cultivation of crops.

Question 11

what are transhumance

Answer 11

Herders move animals to distant grazing areas, usually seasonally. A permanent residence exists.

Question 12

what is Sedentary including semi-nomadism

Answer 12

Animal owners travel to distant grazing areas for long periods of time. The people have a permanent place of residence and practice supplementary cultivation

Question 13

what is Vertical mobility

Answer 13

Regular movement of herds from valleys to mountains in regions such as Turkey, the Iranian plateau, North Africa, the Himalayas, Kyrgyzstan, and the Andes. Movement is associated with higher-rainfall zones. Houses may be built at regularly used sites.

Question 14

what is horizontal mobility

Answer 14

An opportunistic movement that tends to follow the rain. Movement patterns are short-term, often disrupted by climatic, economic, or political change.

Question 15

what are the different kinds of pastoralists

Answer 15

1) nomads
2) transhumance
3) sedentary semi-nomadism

Question 16

what are the different kinds of mobility for pastoralists

Answer 16

1) vertical

2) horizontal

Question 17

why is pastoralism beneficial and nessicary in some countries

Answer 17

Pastoralism is a rational and sustainable livelihood strategy for people living in marginal lands. Mobility, moving animals to available resources, rather than moving the resources to the animals, is a key feature of the sustainability of pastoralism enabling the pastoralists to take advantage of seasonal pastures, water, and fixed resources such as salt patches and avoid challenges such as drought, peak biting insect seasons and political disruption

Question 18

how do livestock benefit the land in pastoralism

Answer 18

The livestock contribute to maintaining range biodiversity and provide a connection between ecosystems by transporting seeds; trampling and grazing improve the water-holding capacity of the soil, reduce the risk of fires and contribute to soil fertility through nutrient cycling

Question 19

why is pastoralism beneficial to livestock species

Answer 19

Pastoralists also contribute to livestock species diversity by maintaining species adapted to their local areas and the climatic and disease challenges endemic to those areas

Question 20

what kind of animals do subsistence farmers have on what kind of lands

Answer 20

Subsistence farmers generally have mixed farms that include a small number of pigs, poultry, sheep and/or goats that scavenge or graze communal lands

Question 21

how many people are supported by subsistence farming

Answer 21

It is estimated that 500 million smallholder farms support 2 billion people through subsistence farming

Question 22

what is subsistence farming

Answer 22

farms of less than five acres

Question 23

what benefits subsistence farm animals offer

Answer 23

The livestock add value to crop by-products, residues, and kitchen wastes when these are available

Question 24

what benefits do subsistence farm animals offer to communities

Answer 24

Livestock produced by subsistence farms provides supplemental food to the family or the community and only rarely are surpluses available for marketing

Question 25

what do subsistence farmers provide as a safety net

Answer 25

The livestock provides a food safety net for times between harvests or when crops fail.

Question 26

what is ranching

Answer 26

Ranching is a market-driven enterprise that involves large herds of cattle or sheep following natural cycles for reproduction

Question 27

besides the ranch what other land can be provided to support livestock

Answer 27

communal land may be used to augment land owned by individual producers for grazing livestock

Question 28

in ranching what is human labor used for

Answer 28

Human labor is used to provide supplemental feeding, disease treatment or prevention; it may also extend to moving animals periodically for grazing management

Question 29

how often can labor be required of an intense ranch grazing system

Answer 29

Intensive grazing management systems may entail the movement of animals as frequently as every two to three days thus requiring more intensive inputs.

Question 30

what animals can be used for ranching

Answer 30

Other species that may be ranch-raised in a manner similar to that used for cattle and sheep include alternative livestock such as caribou, bison, elk, and deer