Abstract
How Mongolian herders perceive ecological change in a “stable” landscape
Highlights
Landscapes are complex social-ecological systems (Bieling 2013), in which natural and anthropological drivers generate a variety of changes (Bürgi et al 2005)
Indicators were sorted into three main groups: trends, regenerative successions, and fluctuations
Trends Mongolian herders observed and reported a considerable diversity of trends happening in their landscape using 24 indicators
Summary
Landscapes are complex social-ecological systems (Bieling 2013), in which natural and anthropological drivers generate a variety of changes (Bürgi et al 2005). These changes may have fundamental impacts on local livelihoods, especially in communities dependent on local natural resources, such as nomadic livestock keepers utilizing unfenced rangelands (Johnson et al 2006). Climate change has had a considerable impact on rangeland condition, available forage production, water resources, and shifting boundaries of ecological zones (Angerer et al 2008, Venable et al 2012, Fernández-Giménez et al 2017). E.g., fertilization and sowing perennial grass varieties, is not a widely applicable solution in Mongolia on account of the harsh climatic conditions (short growing season), it is increasingly necessary to rely on natural spontaneous regeneration, especially in areas with water scarcity, poor soils, and rocky terrains (Chognii 2001). Khishigbayar et al (2015) and Bestelmeyer et al (2017) argue that most of the degraded pastures in Mongolia could still recover with appropriate utilization, e.g., with higher mobility of herds and more widespread pasture resting, but if current grazing practices and grazing pressures continue, there is a low chance of recovery
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