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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Climate, Land Use And Plant Life Form Distribution In A Semi-Arid Savanna, Christina Skarpe Sep 2024

Climate, Land Use And Plant Life Form Distribution In A Semi-Arid Savanna, Christina Skarpe

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Number of plant species, total vegetation cover and the abundance of different life forms are compared over a rainfall gradient between savanna woodland and semi-desert. The effects of different land use intensities are superimposed on the differences in rainfall regimes. The outcome is discussed in the light of present global change scenarios,


Land Subdivision In The Falkland Islands, O W. Summers, W.J R. Haydock, A Kerr Sep 2024

Land Subdivision In The Falkland Islands, O W. Summers, W.J R. Haydock, A Kerr

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

The Falkland Islands agricultural industry depends mainly on wool production. This paper reviews the structure of an induslry which has changed radically in the last 10 years. Lord Shackleton completed his economic survey of the Falkland Islands in 1976 when there where only 36 fanns, most of which were owned by companies based mainly in the UK, and an absentee-landlord system prevailed. Shackleton advocated that the Falkland Islands Government should purchase large fanns and split them into smaller family units for sale to local people. Presently (1991-92) there are 92 farms and most of the Islands is in local ownership. …


Land Use Transition In The Grazing Areas Of Narok District, Kenya, W N. Wamicha, V P. D'Costa Aug 2024

Land Use Transition In The Grazing Areas Of Narok District, Kenya, W N. Wamicha, V P. D'Costa

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

This work underscores the need for land use transitions in the Kilgoris and Lolgorien divisions of the Narok district, Because of the competition for grass between livestock and wildlife in addition to low technology used by the farmers, concentration of livestock in the area is very low (I SU/3 ha). Although the area is in agroclimatic zones (1-111), with high to medium potential for agricultural production, less than 40% is under cultivation. The main objective of this study was therefore to analyse the environmental and economic aspects of the potential agricultural production in the area. Animal production has 􀀼en found …


On-Farm Information: A Valuable Tool For The Sustainable Management Of Mountain Pastures In Protected Natural Areas, N. Mandaluniz, A. Bernués, A. Igarzabal, I. J. L. Riedel, R. Ruiz, A. Sanz, I. Casasús, L. M. Oregui Aug 2023

On-Farm Information: A Valuable Tool For The Sustainable Management Of Mountain Pastures In Protected Natural Areas, N. Mandaluniz, A. Bernués, A. Igarzabal, I. J. L. Riedel, R. Ruiz, A. Sanz, I. Casasús, L. M. Oregui

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Mountain pastures have traditionally been maintained by livestock. The analysis of data concerning farms' characteristics, productive-reproductive management and land use of commercial farms can constitute a real approach to study these systems and the changes that are occurring. This information is necessary to develop new utilisation guidelines, making compatible livestock production and conservation of natural resources. This paper describes a methodological framework to study the issues described above through some examples taken out from a wider research project (Mandaluniz et al., 2003).


Do Species And Functional Diversity Indices Reflect Changes In Grazing Regimes And Climatic Conditions In Northeastern Spain?, F. De Bello, J. Leps, M. T. Sebastià Jun 2023

Do Species And Functional Diversity Indices Reflect Changes In Grazing Regimes And Climatic Conditions In Northeastern Spain?, F. De Bello, J. Leps, M. T. Sebastià

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Understanding the mechanisms that maintain biodiversity in various ecosystems enables the development of management practices that prevent degradation (Canals & Sebastia, 2000). Each diversity index reflects some compositional properties and could be influenced differently by stress and disturbance factors (Magurran, 2004). In this study, we aim to reveal 1) which management practices and environmental factors affect biodiversity in rangelands of northeastern Spain and 2) the relationship between species diversity and functional diversity (SD and FD).


Net Ecosystem Productivity Of A Grassland In Comparison With An Arable And A Forest Ecosystem, Phillip A. Davis, K. Black, J. Clifton-Brown, G. Lanigan, J. Burke, A. Fortune, M. B. Jones, B. Osborne Jun 2023

Net Ecosystem Productivity Of A Grassland In Comparison With An Arable And A Forest Ecosystem, Phillip A. Davis, K. Black, J. Clifton-Brown, G. Lanigan, J. Burke, A. Fortune, M. B. Jones, B. Osborne

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Grassland, arable farming and forests are the major land use categories in Ireland and it is, therefore, important to know the carbon-source/sink strengths of these land use types. Forest ecosystems are also an important and fast growing land use category in Ireland. Here we present a comparison of the net ecosystem productivity (NEP) of these three land use categories (grass land, arable and forest) from three sites.


The Suitability For Organic Cattle Beef Production Of Mixed Farming Systems In The Highlands Of North East Portugal, J. M. Pires, M. Rodrigues, F. Sousa, A. Bernardo, J. C. Pires, J. Cabanas, H. Resendes, M. J. Ferreira, M. I. Silva, N. Moreira Jun 2023

The Suitability For Organic Cattle Beef Production Of Mixed Farming Systems In The Highlands Of North East Portugal, J. M. Pires, M. Rodrigues, F. Sousa, A. Bernardo, J. C. Pires, J. Cabanas, H. Resendes, M. J. Ferreira, M. I. Silva, N. Moreira

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

The EC Reg. 1804/99 takes account of animal production in organic farming. However, these specifications may limit implementation and expansion of organic animal production, due to environmental and system constraints. Mixed farming, as defined by Spedding (1988) and Grigg (1996), is commonly practiced in the NE highlands of Portugal. Two farms were studied in this region in order to evaluate their suitability for organic cattle beef production, taking account of the technical specifications of the EC regulation.


Implications Of Land Use Changes On The Yields In Dry Matter, Energy And Protein Of Range And Crop Fields In Zamfara Reserve, Northwestern Nigeria, B. S. Malami, P. H. Y. Hiernaux, H. M. Tukur, B. Rischkowsky Jun 2023

Implications Of Land Use Changes On The Yields In Dry Matter, Energy And Protein Of Range And Crop Fields In Zamfara Reserve, Northwestern Nigeria, B. S. Malami, P. H. Y. Hiernaux, H. M. Tukur, B. Rischkowsky

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

The Zamfara reserve is a 235,500 ha grazing land within the Sudan savannah zone (12º 10' - 13º 05 N; 6º 30' - 7º15' E) of north western Nigeria. Rainfall varies from 500mm in the north to 800mm in the south of the reserve, and is restricted within the months of May - September. The reserve is an important grazing site for the herds of sedentary, transhumant and agro pastoralists. Population growth within the farming communities in the reserve has led to the conversion of more grazing land to croplands. This work was carried out to evaluate the quantity and …


Do Species And Functional Diversity Indices Reflect Changes In Grazing Regimes And Climatic Conditions In Northeastern Spain?, F. De Bello, J. Leps, M. T. Sebastià Mar 2023

Do Species And Functional Diversity Indices Reflect Changes In Grazing Regimes And Climatic Conditions In Northeastern Spain?, F. De Bello, J. Leps, M. T. Sebastià

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

Understanding the mechanisms that maintain biodiversity in various ecosystems enables the development of management practices that prevent degradation (Canals & Sebastia, 2000). Each diversity index reflects some compositional properties and could be influenced differently by stress and disturbance factors (Magurran, 2004). In this study, we aim to reveal 1) which management practices and environmental factors affect biodiversity in rangelands of northeastern Spain and 2) the relationship between species diversity and functional diversity (SD and FD).


Effects Of Landscape Structure On Plants Species Richness In Small Grassland Remnants In Two Different Landscapes, S. A. O. Cousins, O. Eriksson Mar 2023

Effects Of Landscape Structure On Plants Species Richness In Small Grassland Remnants In Two Different Landscapes, S. A. O. Cousins, O. Eriksson

IGC Proceedings (1993-2023)

There is an increasing interest in using the landscape as the operational scale in many ecological studies. Current species richness in the landscape may be explained by past land use, and habitats may harbour species favoured by an environment that no longer exists. In this study we have included both a landscape scale and a temporal scale. The objective was to explain species pattern and the effect of isolation, habitat size and surrounding land use, and past land use change, on small grassland remnants in rural landscapes.


Effects Of Post Eviction Resettlement On Land-Use And Cover Change In Uganda’S Oil Exploration Areas, Joseph Ssekandi, John Mburu, Oliver Wasonga, Laban Macopiyo, Charles A. Francis Jan 2017

Effects Of Post Eviction Resettlement On Land-Use And Cover Change In Uganda’S Oil Exploration Areas, Joseph Ssekandi, John Mburu, Oliver Wasonga, Laban Macopiyo, Charles A. Francis

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Faculty Publications

Evaluation of the changes in land use and land cover change (LULCC) in respect to oil exploration across the Albertine region in Uganda has been focused around the exploration areas and protected areas, with no attention to the potential impacts of evictees’ activities on resettled areas. This study used LANDSAT images to analyze the land use and land cover changes (LULCC) among the period before eviction (2002 and 2005) at the climax of eviction and resettlements (2005-2011), and during the post-resettlement period (2011-2015) to quantify the impacts of resettlements on the environment. LANDSAT images were processed using ERDAS IMAGINE software …


Introducing A New Parametric Concept For Land Suitability Assessment, Ahmed Harb Rabia Mar 2013

Introducing A New Parametric Concept For Land Suitability Assessment, Ahmed Harb Rabia

Ahmed Harb Rabia A.H. Rabia

In an ecosystem, there is need to establish the quantity and quality of resources and their suitability for a certain range of land uses in order to assure its future productivity and sustainability of biodiversity. Parametric methods are widely used for land suitability evaluation. A new parametric concept “equation” of land suitability evaluation has been proposed to improve results of land suitability evaluation. Land suitability assessment for wheat production was conducted in order to compare results of the suggest method with classical parametric methods. Organic matter, CaCO3, pH, Slope, texture, drainage, depth, EC and altitude were recognized as factors affecting …


The Application Of A Visual Data Mining Framework To Determine Soil, Climate And Land-Use Relationships, Yunous Vagh Jan 2012

The Application Of A Visual Data Mining Framework To Determine Soil, Climate And Land-Use Relationships, Yunous Vagh

Research outputs 2012

In this research study, the methodology of action research dynamics and a case study was employed in constructing a visual data mining framework for the processing and analysis of geographic land-use data in an agricultural context. The geographic data was made up of a digital elevation model (DEM), soil and land use profiles that were juxtaposed with previously captured climatic data from fixed weather stations in Australia. In this pilot study, monthly rainfall profiles for a selected study area were used to identify areas of soil variability. The rainfall was sampled for the beginning (April) of the rainy season for …


Integrated Weed Management Plan For The Lower Las Vegas Wash, Elizabeth Bickmore Sep 2003

Integrated Weed Management Plan For The Lower Las Vegas Wash, Elizabeth Bickmore

Publications (WR)

The Las Vegas Wash (Wash) is the primary drainage for the metropolitan Las Vegas Valley, eventually finding its way into the Colorado River watershed system. Pursuant to the recommendations of the Water Quality Citizens Advisory Committee, the Las Vegas Wash Coordination Committee (LVWCC) was formed in 1998 to develop a comprehensive plan for the long-term stabilization and management of the Wash. Consisting of representatives from 28 government agencies, businesses, environmental groups and citizens, the LVWCC formulated the Las Vegas Wash Comprehensive Adaptive Management Plan (CAMP) and designated the Southern Nevada Water Authority (SNWA) as the lead agency for the implementation …


An Inventory And Condition Survey Of The Sandstone-Yalgoo-Paynes Find Area, Western Australia, A L. Payne, A M E Van Vreeswyk, K A. Leighton, H J. Pringle, P Hennig Jan 1998

An Inventory And Condition Survey Of The Sandstone-Yalgoo-Paynes Find Area, Western Australia, A L. Payne, A M E Van Vreeswyk, K A. Leighton, H J. Pringle, P Hennig

Technical Bulletins

The inventory and condition survey of the Sandstone-Yalgoo-Paynes Find area, undertaken by the Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia (DAFWA) between 1992 and 1993, describes and maps the natural resources of the region’s pastoral leasehold land. This survey report provides a baseline record of the existence and condition of the area’s natural resources, to assist with the planning and implementation of land management practices. The report identified and described the condition of soils, landforms, vegetation, habitat, ecosystems, and declared plants and animals. It also assessed the impact of pastoralism and made land management recommendations. The area surveyed covers about …


Pasture Condition Guides For The Murchison River Catchment, A Fox, T R. Eckersley Jan 1991

Pasture Condition Guides For The Murchison River Catchment, A Fox, T R. Eckersley

Soil conservation survey collection

Knowledge of the pasture resource and its capabilities is essential to sustainable use of the rangelands. Rangeland managers must be able to recognise firstly the different pasture types, and secondly, the differences between present condition classes for each type. Both factors affect the stock carrying capacity, and appropriate pastoral management of a pasture. This guide has been produced for use by pastoralists to assist them to recognise and assess the condition of the perennial pasture resource of their own properties. The guide describes the condition states found in 10 of the most widespread pastures of the Murchison River catchment (Fig. …