Abstract
The spectre of ‘overgrazing’ looms large in historical and political narratives of ecological degradation in savannah ecosystems. While pastoral exploitation is a conspicuous driver of landscape variability and modification, assumptions that such change is inevitable or necessarily negative deserve to be continuously evaluated and challenged. With reference to three case studies from Kenya – the Laikipia Plateau, the Lake Baringo basin, and the Amboseli ecosystem – we argue that the impacts of pastoralism are contingent on the diachronic interactions of locally specific environmental, political, and cultural conditions. The impacts of the compression of rangelands and restrictions on herd mobility driven by misguided conservation and economic policies are emphasised over outdated notions of pastoralist inefficiency. We review the application of ‘overgrazing’ in interpretations of the archaeological record and assess its relevance for how we interpret past socio-environmental dynamics. Any discussion of overgrazing, or any form of human-environment interaction, must acknowledge spatio-temporal context and account for historical variability in landscape ontogenies.
Highlights
As Europeans pushed to colonize and cultivate lands in the intemperate tropics they became intensely interested in theHum Ecol (2019) 47:419–434 during the 1950s considered the predominance of milk-based economies over meat-oriented production, deemed more efficient in terms of food provision per unit of forage, to be a demonstration of pastoralists’ irrationality
In a similar vein and with reference to some of these same areas, we argue in this paper that the impacts of livestock on African ecosystems are highly variable and contingent on particular political, social, and environmental context
While in some areas arrangements with landowners allow local pastoralists controlled-access to grazing and water within the private ranches, land invasion is an ongoing problem and Laikipia has garnered notoriety in the international media following the murders of several European ranchers, Kenyan rangers, and police reservists over recent years
Summary
Hum Ecol (2019) 47:419–434 during the 1950s considered the predominance of milk-based economies over meat-oriented production, deemed more efficient in terms of food provision per unit of forage, to be a demonstration of pastoralists’ irrationality. While in some areas arrangements with landowners allow local pastoralists controlled-access to grazing and water within the private ranches, land invasion is an ongoing problem and Laikipia has garnered notoriety in the international media following the murders of several European ranchers, Kenyan rangers, and police reservists over recent years. These invasions can bring tens of thousands of cattle into the ranches with dramatic impacts on local ecologies and though usually associated with periods of drought (e.g., 2011–12 and 2016– 17), their motivations cannot be divorced from political context (Iaccino 2017). During the dry season elephants in Amboseli shift their diets from grass toward
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
