Population Management

Managing Cattle HerdsDay 1

East Africa Cattle Farming

• Cow dung provides fertilizer.

• Cows serve as work animals.

• Cows provide meat and milk.

• Bridal dowries are paid in cattle.

Cattle and wildlife are both a valued resource in East Africa because the ecotourism industry

boost the economy.

What do East African cattle and wildlife have in common?

Value of the Grasslandshttps://vimeo.com/77808155

Goal of this lesson:

1. What issues do ranchers face when trying to maintain healthy herds?

2. How does knowing about population dynamics help ranchers and conservationists balance the needs of cattle and wildlife that live in the same space?

3-2-1 Chart (Draw in your science notebook)

3 Major Issues for Ranchers1.2.3.

2 ways ranchers address the issue:

1.2.

2 ways ranchers address the issue:

1.2.

1 way the content in this lesson relates to what you knew before.

2 ways ranchers address the issue:

1.2.

What do you think the 3 major issues for ranchers and cattle are?

Issue #1 Predators

What kind of predators do you think there are?

Issue #1 Predators

Any ideas on what they could do to prevent these predators from eating

their cattle?

Predators (Issue #1)

• Identify the possible predators on the land so that proper methods are used to keep the animals safe.

• Install kraals (Cattle let out in the day for grazing and returned to the kraal at night).

• Install wire fencing with electrical wires.• Use guard animals such as dogs or donkeys to protect

the herds.• Practice good herd management – • Balance the grass/food consumption between cattle

and wildlife.

Issue #1: Predators

On your 3-2-1 Chart, write 2 ways that ranchers can prevent predators.

The Invention that made peace with the lions.

http://www.ted.com/talks/richard_turere_a_peace_treaty_with_the_lions?language=en

Issue #2 Cattle’s Health

What are some things that ranchers can do to make sure that the cattle

stay healthy?

Meet the Scientist: M. Sanjayan

https://vimeo.com/77229010

Population Management #1: Cattle Health

https://vimeo.com/78371203

Issue #2 Cattle’s Health

• 3 main concerns to keep cattle healthy:– Making sure the grass is healthy and abundant– Access to water (frequently)– Keeping cattle safe from predators

Issue #2 Cattle’s Health

• If the ranchers maintain cattle populations that are the appropriate size for the amount of land and rotate the cattle to graze (allowing the plants recovery time) there is a better chance of having enough forage for the their cattle.

Forage for the Herds

How can a rancher insure that there is enough forage for the cattle?

Forage for the Herds

Terms to know: – Grazing rights is a legal term referring to the right

of a user to allow their livestock to graze in a given area.

– Overgrazing happens when animals or cattle graze excessively to the point that it damages the vegetation/grass.

Forage for the Herds

How do you think cattle help keep the grass/grasslands healthy?

(Round Robin w/table groups)

Forage for the Herds

• Their hooves make seed to soil contact which helps dormant seeds to germinate and establish.

• They break soil crusts that keep seeds from growing.• They trample standing vegetation into mulch to protect soil

and keep it most.• They turn vegetation into high-quality fertilizer.• They prune stale growth keeping forage plants at peak

production (also leaves more suitable parts of grasses for wildlife.

• They prune plants which causes roots to self-prune and become soil.

Issue #2 Cattle’s Health

On your 3-2-1 Chart write two ways that cattle help maintain the food

supply in a grassland habitat.

Issue #3 Access to Water

Why do you think ranchers are concerned about accessing water?

Population Management #2: Drought

https://vimeo.com/78371206

Population Management #3: Seasonality

https://vimeo.com/78371204

Issue #3 Access to Water

On your 3-2-1 Chart write two ways that ranchers use to try to provide

the herds with access to water.

On your 3-2-1 Chart reflect and write a sentence about how this

information relates to something you already knew.

Carry Capacity = the number of animals that a given area of land

can support.

Population Management #4: Science

https://vimeo.com/78371208

How can science help land managers work with cattle owners to balance the water needs of

their cattle, wildlife, and irrigated agriculture?

To determine carry capacity of land and figure out appropriate herd size a rancher must consider:

• How much food each cow needs based on weight

• Total amount of grass on land• How much grass is available for forage (based

on the take-half, leave-half rule)

Evaluation

• Open up your science notebook to the next available page.

• Draw 3 columns down the page.• 1st column -write why cattle populations are

important to the people in East Africa.• 2nd column - describe the issues cattle ranchers

face when trying to maintain healthy herds.• 3rd column - summarize what a rancher needs to

consider when calculating appropriate herd size.