Integrating spatio-temporal variation in resource availability and herbivore movements into rangeland management: RaMDry-An agent-based model on livestock feeding ecology in a dynamic, heterogeneous, semi-arid environment
Authored by Pascal Fust, Eva Schlecht
Date Published: 2018
DOI: 10.1016/j.ecolmodel.2017.10.017
Sponsors:
German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
Platforms:
NetLogo
Model Documentation:
ODD
Model Code URLs:
https://www.comses.net/codebases/5860/releases/1.0.0/
Abstract
Fast growth of the human population puts high pressure on pasture
habitats due to increasingly high grazing intensities on shrinking
grazing land. Adapted herbivore management is needed to maintain the
long term productivity of the rangeland ecosystem, especially in dry
climates where precipitation is highly erratic and where forage yield
and quality of the pasture are highly dynamic. We used an agent-based
approach to develop a spatially explicit model for a case study region
in Madagascar. Our model ``RaMDry{''} integrates the movements and
feeding metabolism of domesticated ruminants in order to assess the
potential of adaptive livestock production in a highly dynamic,
heterogeneous, semi-arid rangeland system. It evaluates the additional
metabolic energy costs due to pastoral herd movements in search of
forage, incorporates seasonal dynamics in forage quality in terms of
feed digestibility and relates forage availability and quality to
climatic conditions. In the presented study, we focused on describing
the processes simulated in RaMDry in detail, simplifying model
conditions by implying free-ranging conditions. We verified the results
of the model through global and local sensitivity analysis and pattern
oriented modeling and compared findings with observed patterns and
existing data from literature. Our model provides a useful tool to
assess strategies and effects of locally adapted herd and rangeland
utilization for sustained food security and household economy of
livestock keepers in the semi-arid tropics and sub-tropics. Subject for
further analysis of the model is its capability to simulate different
management strategies and climatic conditions as well as the development
of the models' capacity to predict accumulative effects of environmental
degradation. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.
Tags
Model description
model validation
Simulation-model
Climate-change
South-africa
Sensitivity-analysis
Northern australia
Energy-expenditure
Mahafaly
Energy maximization
Rangeland productivity
Ruminant foraging
simulation
Grazing management
Arid
rangelands
Stocking rate
Zebu cattle