Explore the vast range of titles available.

Livestock grazing at low stocking rates is widely recommended to maintain grassland biodiversity. However, empirical evidence of grazing‐intensity effects on plant diversity is contradictory. Explicitly considering the small‐scale heterogeneity of short, frequently grazed and tall, rarely grazed patches typical of low‐input grazing systems may be crucial to the understanding of paddock‐scale grazing effects. We studied three patch types (short, intermediate, tall) within an unfertilised long‐term cattle grazing experiment in Lower Saxony, Germany, comparing three paddock‐scale grazing intensities. We analysed soil nutrient concentrations and recorded vegetation composition at a total of 135 plots. We determined species richness, Simpson diversity, Simpson evenness and beta diversity of individual plots (plot scale) and patch types within paddocks (patch scale). To quantify paddock‐scale diversity, we resampled plot‐scale species composition across a gradient of relative proportions of short and tall patches within a paddock. Patch type, not paddock‐scale grazing intensity, was the main driver of plant diversity at both plot and patch scale. Short patches were more diverse than tall patches, but the effect was not strongly mediated by the lower soil nutrient concentrations in the short patches. By contrast, both patch type and grazing intensity affected vegetation composition at plot and patch scale. Beta‐diversity within and between patch types was independent of grazing intensity; consequently, paddock‐scale diversity was determined by the relative proportion of short versus tall patches. Higher alpha diversity of short patches compared to tall patches was more important than beta diversity between the two patch types in shaping paddock‐scale diversity. Consequently, with increasing short‐patch proportion, paddock‐scale diversity increased. Synthesis and applications. Our study identifies the grazing‐induced patch structure as the most important driver of plant diversity across different grazing intensities in low‐input, that is, unfertilised and continuously stocked, pastures. To optimise grazing management for biodiversity, understanding plant‐diversity responses to grazing at the patch scale is indispensable. Our results suggest that, in unfertilised, continuously stocked European pastures, trade‐offs between biodiversity and agronomic production may be small, as short patches, whose proportion increases with stocking rate, also had the highest plant diversity. Our study identifies the grazing‐induced patch structure as the most important driver of plant diversity across different grazing intensities in low‐input, that is, unfertilised and continuously stocked, pastures. To optimise grazing management for biodiversity, understanding plant‐diversity responses to grazing at the patch scale is indispensable. Our results suggest that, in unfertilised, continuously stocked European pastures, trade‐offs between biodiversity and agronomic production may be small, as short patches, whose proportion increases with stocking rate, also had the highest plant diversity.

Grazing can have considerable ecological impacts when managed inappropriately, however livestock production is a significant contributor to global food security and the removal of land from production is not always a viable option. Grazing management practices that incorporate periods of planned rest (i.e. strategic‐rest grazing) may be an alternative to grazing exclusion or continuous grazing that could achieve ecological and animal production outcomes simultaneously. We conducted a meta‐analysis of global literature to investigate how strategic‐rest grazing mediates ecological (i.e., plant richness and diversity), biophysical (plant biomass and ground cover) and production response variables (animal weight gain and animal production per hectare) compared to continuously grazed or ungrazed areas. Overall, total ground cover and animal production per hectare were significantly greater under strategic‐rest grazing than continuous grazing management, but biomass, plant richness, plant diversity and animal weight gain did not differ between grazing treatments. Increasing the length of rest relative to graze time under strategic‐rest grazing was associated with an increase in plant biomass, ground cover, animal weight gain and animal production per hectare when compared to continuous grazing. Synthesis and applications. Understanding both the ecological and animal production trade‐offs associated with different grazing management strategies is essential to make informed decisions about best‐management practices for the world's grazing lands. We show that incorporating periods of rest into grazing regimes improves ground cover and animal production per hectare and that these benefits are more pronounced with increases in the length of time land is rested for. This extended rest also improves biomass production and weight gain compared to continuous grazing systems. Based on these meta‐analyses, we recommend that future research considers the duration of rest compared to graze time in comparisons of grazing systems. Understanding both the ecological and animal production trade‐offs associated with different grazing management strategies is essential to make informed decisions about best‐management practices for the world's grazing lands. We show that incorporating periods of rest into grazing regimes improves ground cover and animal production per hectare and that these benefits are more pronounced with increases in the length of time land is rested for. This extended rest also improves biomass production and weight gain compared to continuous grazing systems. Based on these meta‐analyses, we recommend that future research considers the duration of rest compared to graze time in comparisons of grazing systems.

Grazing effects on soil properties under different soil and environmental conditions across the globe are often controversial. Therefore, it is essential to evaluate the overall magnitude and direction of the grazing effects on soils. This global meta-analysis was conducted using the mixed model method to address the overall effects of grazing intensities (heavy, moderate, and light) on 15 soil properties based on 287 papers published globally from 2007 to 2019. Our findings showed that heavy grazing significantly increased the soil BD (11.3% relative un-grazing) and PR (52.5%) and reduced SOC (-10.8%), WC (-10.8%), NO.sub.3 .sup.- (-23.5%), and MBC (-27.9%) at 0-10 cm depth, and reduced SOC (-22.5%) and TN (-19.9%) at 10-30 cm depth. Moderate grazing significantly increased the BD (7.5%), PR (46.0%), and P (18.9%) (0-10 cm), and increased pH (4.1%) and decreased SOC (-16.4%), TN (-10.6%), and P (-23.9%) (10-30 cm). Light grazing significantly increased the SOC (10.8%) and NH.sub.4 .sup.+ (28.7%) (0-10 cm). Heavy grazing showed much higher mean probability (0.70) leading to overgrazing than the moderate (0.14) and light (0.10) grazing. These findings indicate that, globally, compared to un-grazing, heavy grazing significantly increased soil compaction and reduced SOC, NO.sub.3 .sup.-, and soil moisture. Moderate grazing significantly increased soil compaction and alkalinity and reduced SOC and TN. Light grazing significantly increased SOC and NH.sub.4 .sup.+ . Cattle grazing impacts on soil compaction, SOC, TN, and available K were higher than sheep grazing, but lower for PR. Climate significantly impacted grazing effects on SOM, TN, available P, NH.sub.4 .sup.+, EC, CEC, and PR. Heavy grazing can be more detrimental to soil quality based on BD, SOC, TN, C: N, WC, and K than moderate and light grazing. However, global grazing intensities did not significantly impact most of the 15 soil properties, and the grazing effects on them had insignificant changes over the years.

Livestock grazing has been shown to alter the structure and functions of grassland ecosystems. It is well acknowledged that grazing pressure is one of the strongest drivers of ecosystem‐level effects of grazing, but few studies have assessed how grazing pressure impacts grassland biodiversity and ecosystem multifunctionality (EMF). Here, we assessed how different metrics of biodiversity (i.e., plants and soil microbes) and EMF responded to seven different grazing treatments based on an 11‐year field experiment in semi‐arid Inner Mongolian steppe. We found that soil organic carbon, plant‐available nitrogen and plant functional diversity all decreased even at low grazing pressure, while above‐ground primary production and bacterial abundance decreased only at high levels of grazing pressure. Structural equation models revealed that EMF was driven by direct effects of grazing, rather than the effects of grazing on plant or microbial community composition. Grazing effects on plant functional diversity and soil microbial abundance did have moderate effects on EMF, while plant richness did not. Synthesis. Our results showed ecosystem functions differ in their sensitivity to grazing pressure, requiring a low grazing threshold to achieve multiple goals in the Eurasian steppe. A plain language summary is available for this article. Plain Language Summary

Livestock grazing is the most widespread land use on Earth and can have negative effects on biodiversity. Yet, many of the mechanisms by which grazing leads to changes in biodiversity remain unresolved. One reason is that conventional grazing studies often target broad treatments rather than specific parameters of grazing (e.g., intensity, duration, and frequency) or fail to account for historical grazing effects. We conducted a landscape-scale replicated grazing experiment (15,000 km², 97 sites) to examine the impact of past grazing management and current grazing regimes (intensity, duration, and frequency) on a community of grounddwelling herpetofauna (39 species). We analyzed community variables (species richness and composition) for all species and built multiseason patch-occupancy models to predict local colonization and extinction for the 7 most abundant species. Past grazing practices did not influence community richness but did affect community composition and patch colonization and extinction for 4 of 7 species. Present grazing parameters did not influence community richness or composition, but 6 of the 7 target species were affected by at least one grazing parameter. Grazing frequency had the most consistent influence, positively affecting 3 of 7 species (increased colonization or decreased extinction). Past grazing practice affected community composition and population dynamics in some species in different ways, which suggests that conservation planners should examine the different grazing histories of an area. Species responded differently to specific current grazing practices; thus, incentive programs that apply a diversity of approaches rather than focusing on a change such as reduced grazing intensity should be considered. Based on our findings, we suggest that determining fine-scale grazing attributes is essential for advancing grazing as a conservation strategy. El pastoreo de ganado es el uso de suelo más extenso sobre la Tierra y puede tener un efecto negativo sobre la biodiversidad. A pesar de esto, muchos mecanismos mediante los cuales el pastoreo resulta en cambios en la biodiversidad siguen sin ser resueltos. Una razón es que los estudios sobre el pastoreo convencional generalmente se enfocan en tratamientos generales en lugar de los parámetros específicos del pastoreo (por ejemplo, intensidad, duración y frecuencia) o fracasan en tomar en cuenta los efectos históricos del pastoreo. Realizamos un experimento de pastoreo replicado a escala de paisaje (15,000 km², 97 sitios) para examinar el impacto del manejo previo de pastoreo y los regímenes actuales de pastoreo (intensidad, duración y frecuencia) sobre una comunidad de herpotafauna habitante del suelo (39 especies). Analizamos las variables de la comunidad (riqueza de especies y composición) para todas las especies y construimos modelos multi-temporales de ocupación de fragmentos para predecir la colonización local y la extinción para las siete especies más abundantes. Las prácticas pasadas de pastoreo no tuvieron influencia sobre la riqueza de la comunidad pero sí afectaron a la composición de la comunidad y a la colonización de fragmentos y extinción para cuatro de las siete especies. Los parámetros del pastoreo actual no influyeron sobre la riqueza o la composición de la comunidad, pero seis de las siete especies blanco estuvieron afectadas por al menos un parámetro de pastoreo. La frecuencia del pastoreo tuvo la influencia más consistente, afectando positivamente a tres de las siete especies (colonización incrementada o extinción disminuida). La práctica pasada del pastoreo afectó a la composición de la comunidad y a las dinámicas poblacionales en algunas especies de maneras diferentes, lo que sugiere que quienes planean la conservación deberían examinar las diferentes historias de pastoreo de un área. Las especies respondieron de manera diferente a las prácticas actuales del pastoreo; por lo tanto, los programas de incentivos deberían ser considerados son los que apliquen una diversidad de estrategias en lugar de enfocarse en un cambio como la intensidad reducida del pastoreo. Con base en nuestros hallazgos, sugerimos que es esencial determinar los atributos de una escala fina de pastoreo para que el pastoreo avance como una estrategia de conservación.

Grassland insects face some of the most severe declines in species diversity and total abundance, in part due to agriculture. Livestock grazing is the largest agricultural land use and can have both positive and negative effects on insect communities and populations. A global synthesis is needed to guide butterfly conservation and provide recommendations for scientists, managers, and other stakeholders seeking to use grazing as a tool for butterfly conservation. Here I review 115 studies that evaluate how cattle grazing affects butterfly communities and species. I discuss how various aspects of cattle grazing affect butterfly community and species responses. Thirty-five studies concluded cattle grazing has positive effects on butterflies, while 20 concluded cattle grazing has negative effects. Thirty-six were inconclusive or found no effect of grazing. Conclusions depended heavily on the management chosen as well as environmental and evolutionary factors. Eighty-five studies (74%) were located in Europe, providing a useful framework for the rest of the world, but also creating opportunities for further research.Implications for practiceLow to moderate grazing intensity is the most beneficial grazing management strategy for butterflies. There is also potential for rotational grazing to provide benefits, but more research is needed. It is important to have variation in grazing management and other disturbance types in the landscape (mowing, prescribed fire, etc.) to accommodate differing habitat needs of butterfly species. Cattle grazing has potential as a land-sharing opportunity to promote grassland butterfly diversity in agroecosystems.

The spatial heterogeneity of limiting soil resources is an essential factor determining ecosystem processes and function. It has been reported that large herbivores can strongly impact the variation and spatial distribution pattern of soil nitrogen (N). However, it remains unclear how large herbivores affect soil spatial heterogeneity and whether this influence is dependent on plant community diversity. Here we examined effects of different herbivore assemblages [no grazing; cattle grazing (CG); sheep grazing (SG); and mixed grazing (MG) of cattle and sheep] on soil N spatial heterogeneity in grasslands with high and low pre‐grazing plant diversity in an eastern Eurasian steppe. We found that herbivore grazing generated and maintained spatial patterns of soil nutrients, depending on herbivore assemblage and the level of pre‐grazing plant diversity. CG increased the spatial heterogeneity of soil available N in Leymus chinensis‐dominated steppe meadows, which were independent of pre‐grazing plant diversity. However, the effects of SG and MG strongly depended on grassland plant diversity, with an increased spatial heterogeneity of soil available N in the high‐diversity grassland, but not in the low‐diversity grassland. Synthesis and applications. We concluded that in a L. chinensis‐dominated eastern Eurasian steppe, cattle ranching could be considered as an optimal grazing management protocol to improve soil spatial heterogeneity because cattle grazing (CG) consistently increased soil spatial heterogeneity in the context of both low and high plant diversity. Nevertheless, soil spatial heterogeneity could be improved by any herbivore grazing regime [CG and/or sheep grazing (SG)] when high plant diversity is maintained. These findings highlight the importance of conserving plant diversity to maintain grassland structure and ecosystem function. In grassland systems with high plant diversity, herbivore grazing and plant diversity would jointly improve soil spatial heterogeneity, thus feeding back to maintain higher plant diversity. Therefore, high plant diversity could generate a positive feedback loop of herbivore–plant–soil interactions in grazed grassland systems. Our findings indicate the importance of herbivore assemblages in maintaining spatial heterogeneity in low‐ and high‐diversity grassland systems.

Existing beamlines for in situ grazing‐incidence small‐angle scattering on liquids are either limited in angular range or incompatible with the large sample–detector distance required for submicrometre resolution. We present a low‐cost, easily assembled beam‐tilting extension for synchrotron‐based ultra‐small‐angle X‐ray scattering (USAXS) facilities, enabling grazing‐incidence and transmitted scattering (GIUSAXS, GTUSAXS) studies on liquid surfaces. The setup is compatible with standard USAXS beamlines and requires only ∼0.5 m of additional space at the sample stage. It allows X‐ray beam incidence angles of up to ∼0.6° at the liquid surface, equal to twice the angle of incidence on a reflector and below its critical angle of typical materials (e.g. silicon, germanium, etc.), and provides access to a q‐range of approximately 0.003–0.5 nm−1. The system was tested at P03 beamline (DESY) using polystyrene nanoparticles (∼197 nm) self‐assembled at the air/water interface. The recorded GIUSAXS and GTSAXS patterns revealed features characteristic of near‐surface hexagonally ordered monolayers and multilayer assemblies, validating the system's resolution and sensitivity. The proposed scheme enables selective depth profiling and expands the research capabilities of existing small‐angle X‐ray scattering synchrotron facilities for in situ studyies of submicrometre nanostructured objects at liquid surfaces under grazing‐incidence geometry, while remaining fully compatible with complementary techniques such as grazing‐incidence wide‐angle scattering and total reflection X‐ray fluorescence. We present an easily assembled, low‐cost beam‐tilting extension for synchrotron‐based ultra‐small‐angle X‐ray scattering (USAXS) / small‐angle X‐ray scattering (SAXS) beamlines enabling grazing‐incidence (GIUSAXS) and transmitted (GTUSAXS) experiments on liquid surfaces with negligible loss of X‐ray flux. The setup is implemented at the sample stage with ∼0.5 m of additional space and provides incidence angles up to ∼0.6°, corresponding to approximately twice the critical angle of typical reflector materials.

Question How does grazing intensity affect plant community functional traits and the spatial components of functional diversity in subtropical grasslands? Location Long‐term cattle grazing management experiment in subtropical Campos grassland, southern Brazil. Methods Fourteen experimental units (paddocks) maintained under seven grazing intensity treatments for 26 years. In each paddock, we recorded plant species cover and species functional traits in nine systematically located plots of 1 m2. Nineteen functional traits were used in the ordination of species to identify main axes of trait variation. Functional diversity measured by Rao entropy was partitioned into alpha, beta and gamma components. We tested, by linear models, for the effects of grazing intensity on community‐weighted mean traits and functional diversity components, using as traits the species scores on the PCA axes. Results The two main axes of trait variation suggest a separation in species by their functional strategies (acquisition–conservation and tolerance–avoidance trade‐offs). Acquisitive and tolerant species increased while conservative and avoidant species decreased with grazing intensity. Rao quadratic entropy, considering the three spatial components, decreased with grazing intensity, but this trend was more accentuated with beta‐diversity. Conclusions The long‐term, strictly‐managed grazing experiment allowed us to reveal the effect of not only grazing disturbance per se, but also of different grazing intensities. Under high grazing intensity, frequent and severe defoliation allows only the persistence of species similarly adapted to regrowth. Under low grazing intensity, the lack of frequent defoliation enables the development of species with high investment in strong and long‐lived leaves. The partitioning of functional diversity revealed that the increase in functional diversity in areas with low grazing intensity is mostly due to an increase in heterogeneity among patches (beta‐component). The double stratum vegetation structure: tussocks, which escape grazing control, and short‐grazed patches often overgrazed, is maintained by grazer selectivity. We explore the relationship between grazing intensity and plant community functional aspects. Using functional strategy axes instead of single traits for assessing community weighted means and functional diversity, we studied paddocks of native grassland submitted to a long‐term experiment of grazing pressure in Southern Brazil. Functional diversity partition allowed us to observe that the most prominent effect of high grazing intensity was decreasing patch heterogeneity.