Estimation of the carrying capacity of grazing land in the buffer zone of Katavi and Rukwa-lukwati conservation area in Mpanda district

Abstract

This study was conducted in the village land of the buffer zone of South Katavi National Park and the north-western area of the Rukwa-Lukwati Game Reserve, both in Mpimbwe Division, Mpanda District. The study area is characterized by gently undulating hills on the Ufipa plateau between the eastern and western branches of the East African Rift of between 800 and 1000 m above sea level. The area experiences a sub-humid type of climate with medium to high rainfall of between 800 mm in the south and 1200 mm north. Characteristic vegetation is open miombo woodland in most of the area and brash wood, scrubs and tall grass in the rest. In the early 1970’s, many immigrant Sukuma from Shinyanga and Tabora regions with their large numbers of cattle and goats moved into the area in search of good pastures and water for their livestock. Being agro-pastoralists, the immigrants also cleared bush and trees for cultivation. This practice triggered soil erosion, land pressure and social conflicts between the immigrants, local people and conservators. The Katavi- Rukwa Conservation and Development Programme (KRCD), was formed in March 1990, to address the problems through “Community Based Conservation” Approach. One of the first step in these approach was to determine the carrying capacity of the grazing land including all potential feed resources in the village land around wildlife protected areas, in order to determine the number of livestock to be retained in the area without negatively affecting conservation efforts. The study revealed that the Dry matter yield (DMY) from natural pastures was 3.54 tones ha-1yr-1 and the Potential Dry Matter (PDM) production from crop residues was 33.130 tons ha-1 yr-1, the total area under grazing was 49,197ha, the total feed resource potentially available for livestock = 205,320 tons yr-1 and the estimated carrying capacity was 1 TLU: 0.63 ha or 1 LU: 1.26 ha. The herbage production potential of 3.54 tones ha-1 yr-1 obtained in this study is within the range of 0.5-10.0 tons ha-1 yr-1 reported elsewhere in East Africa bearing in mind the diversity of ecosystems. The inclusion of crop residues in carrying capacity computation has resulted in a relatively higher value of 1 TLU:063 as compared to reported figures. In agro-pastoral systems, crop residues constitute a significant part of the feed resource. Before any decision to remove livestock in conflict areas is made, it is important to estimate the carrying capacity in order to accurately predict the maximum number of livestock to be sustainably maintained in the area. Key Words: Carrying capacity - feed resources - crop residues agro-pastoralism - community based conservation - buffer zone.