Living Off Uncertainty: The Intelligent Animal Production of Dryland Pastoralists

Abstract

Despite important advances following the challenge to equilibrium-based models in range ecology, pastoralism is still largely seen as a coping strategy that allows herders to get along with an 'inadequate' resource base. This stance can be traced to a long-established approach in the disciplines that inform pastoral development planning (natural resource management, range ecology, animal science) to rely on analytical tools based on standard statistics and average values. However, pastoralism is better understood as a sui generis production system, that deliberately exploits the transient concentrations of nutrients that represent the most reliable feature of dryland environments; a system geared at maximising the production of economic value while stabilising its performance in environments where 'uncertainty' is harnessed for production. As average values and standard statistics fail to capture non-uniform distribution (relied upon for production in dryland pastoralism), they should not uniquely or uncritically inform pastoral development planning.Malgre´les importants progre`s re´alise´s suite a`la remise en question des mode`les d 0 e´quilibre applique´s a`l 0 e´cologie pastorale, le pastoralisme reste largement conside´re´comme une strate´gie d 0 ajustement permettant tout juste aux e´leveurs de survivre a`partir de ressources 'insuffisantes'. Cette position trouve son origine dans une approche adopte´e depuis longtemps par les disciplines qui fac¸onnent la planification du de´veloppement pastoral (gestion des ressources naturelles, e´cologie pastorale, zootechnie) qui consiste a`s 0 appuyer sur des outils analytiques base´s sur des statistiques standardise´es et des valeurs moyennes. Pourtant, le pastoralisme se comprend mieux comme un syste`me de production sui generis, qui exploite de´libe´re´ment les concentrations fluctuantes de substances nutritives, ce dernier point constituant la principale caracte´ristique des terres arides; comme un syste`me conc¸u pour maximiser la valeur de la production tout en stabilisant ses performances dans des environnements ou`'l'incertitude' est exploite´e pour la production. Les valeurs moyennes et statistiques standardise´es ne permettent pas de prendre en compte la re´partition non-uniforme (sur laquelle repose la production pastorale dans les milieux arides) et par conse´quent ne doivent pas constituer les seules sources de la planification du de´veloppement pastoral.

How Can Local Governance Systems Strengthen Community Resilience? A Social-Ecological Systems Approach

“…Then the task becomes one of identifying, maintaining, strengthening and better integrating institutions across scales of risk governance. For example, a sizable body of evidence has emerged to suggest that many of the management strategies that pastoralists in the Sahel and Horn of Africa regions of Africa employ-including the maintenance of traditional governance structures and various informal institutions-are not merely coping strategies, but strategies for managing risk through the optimisation of resources (Flintan et al, 2013;Hesse & MacGregor, 2006;Krätli & Schareika, 2010;Little, McPeak, Barrett, & Kristjanson, 2008). Effective drought risk management should incorporate such customary, local-level institutions and other natural resource management authorities (Hesse & Macgregor, 2006), as well as informal institutions such as transhumance, herd-splitting, social and familial networks of livestock 'loaning' and customary property rights regimes (Flintan et al, 2013).…”

Ideal Free Distributions of Mobile Pastoralists in Multiple Seasonal Grazing Areas

“…For example, some cattle prefer the pastures of the Logone Floodplain, whereas others prefer those of the Lake Maga area. These preferences develop over time as cattle are trained to graze specific species on specific pastures (Schareika 2003;Krätli 2008;Krätli and Schareika 2010). Because of habitude pastoralists are reluctant to change their habitual orbit because of the additional costs of animals that are not thriving on new pastures.…”

‘It is better to herd than be herded’: making a living with goats in the Bajío region, Mexico

“…Mastering a pastoral system in a relatively harsh environment is something to be recognized (Krätli and Schareika 2010). This type of knowledge is described in Africa (e.g.…”