Joint monitoring of livestock stocking rates and rangeland vegetation of Hombori district in Mali during the 2010-2011 dry season

Abstract

and wide seasonal and interannual variations. Pastoral livestock systems adapt to these patchy and variation resources by herd mobility and some supplement feeding that only partially overcome seasonal forage shortages in dry years. This study aimed at analyzing the relationship between livestock stocking rates and forage availabilities during the 8-9 month dry season at the scale of the Hombori district. Stocking rates were estimated by monthly count of livestock by species, sex and age classes at the main pastoral water points. Herbaceous forage over the district was assessed at the onset of the dry season over using NDVI-MODIS remote sensing calibrated with in situ measurements. In addition, forage availabilities were monitored monthly in the service area of three selected water points as a function of distance from the water point up to 12 km. The results indicated that despite the large numbers of livestock and the weak mobility of the resident herds, the overall stocking rate in the Hombori district remains low, as it entails an average grazing exploitation rate of only 9.4% of the fodder resource during the dry season. The grazing exploitation rate invalidates the statement of widespread 'overgrazing' of forage resources by livestock in the Sahel often advanced in rangeland ecology and management projects.

Keywords: Rangelands, stocking rate, dry season, degradation rate, overgrazing, Sahel.