Modeling tree cover changes in a pasture-dominated landscape by adopting silvopastoral practices in a dry forest region in Central Brazil

Abstract

Pastures are a major soil cover in Central Brazil, especially in rich soils previously occupied by dry forests. We simulated a scenario in which the wooden fences in Paranã Valley are replaced by live fences and isolated trees are left in the pasture fields, and we verified changing in tree cover by adding trees and avoiding logging for wooden fences. The simulation involved the analysis of a 20-year historic series of LANDSAT satellite images to determine the average time of pasture renewal. The average amount of wooden fences produced per hectare of local forest was estimated based on the literature and field data. The high spatial-resolution satellite images available in the Google Earth TM program were analyzed to estimate the total length of the fences and the average and maximum number of isolated trees per hectare found in the pastures of the region. The results showed that pasture renewal happens every 8.1 years. It is possible to produce an average of 1,472 stakes per hectare of forest. In the study area, we estimated the existence of an average of 842 km of wooden fences and 3.9 isolated trees per hectare of pasture (maximum = 48 isolated trees). The results of the simulation showed that the adoption of live fences can increase the crown coverage up to 7.5 % or even up to 14.3 % if all of the pasturelands are managed to have live fences and farmers begin to adopt cover-development practices, such as keeping an average of 48 isolated trees per hectare of pasture.

Meat quality of Morada Nova lambs subjected to different feeding regimes

“…The demand for lamb meat in the country rose by 5% between the years 2000 and 2007, totaling a per capita consumption of 0.7 kg year -1 (FAO, 2013). However, the demand for lamb meat can be considered low when compared with other meats such as beef, pork, and poultry (HERMUCHE et al, 2013a(HERMUCHE et al, , 2013b. Some factors exert a great influence on lamb meat consumption, mainly those associated with eating habits and purchasing power (PAIM et al, 2011).…”

Cercas vivas en sistemas de producción tropicales: una revisión mundial de los usos y percepciones

“…Otro aspecto positivo de la percepción sobre las cercas en la región neotropical es la disminución de la presión sobre la vegetación remanente, debido a que la presencia de las cercas vivas en los predios evita la necesidad de extraer madera de los fragmentos de bosque (Ayuk, 1997;Restrepo-Sáenz et al, 2004). Igualmente, otro componente que estimula el establecimiento de cercas vivas son los altos costos en la obtención de madera en el mercado, lo cual podría obtener beneficios importantes para la conservación de la biodiversidad (Harvey et al, 2005;Nascimento et al, 2009;Otero & Onaindia, 2009;Hermuche et al, 2013;Loyola et al, 2015;Sousa et al, 2016).…”

“…Desde el punto de vista socioeconómico, los agricultores y propietarios de tierras son quienes toman las decisiones sobre el establecimiento, manejo y uso que hacen de las cercas vivas (Harvey, Tucker, & Estrada, 2004). Éstas podrían contribuir en la reducción de la explotación de los bosques remanentes, debido a que proveen recursos como madera, leña y postes para construcción, que hace que disminuya la tala sobre los parches de bosques adyacentes (Budowski, 1993;Nascimento, Sousa, Alves, Araújo, & Albuquerque, 2009;Otero & Onaindia, 2009;Hermuche, Vieira, & Sano, 2013).…”

Manejo de produtos florestais por agricultores tradicionais visando o enriquecimento de uma paisagem de Cerrado no norte de Minas Gerais

“…Dentre as práticas com potencial para restaurar e conservar a biodiversidade em escala de paisagem destaca-se a incorporação de árvores às propriedades rurais através de plantios de enriquecimento, sistemas agroflorestais, sistemas silvopastoris, cercas vivas, entre outras (Calle et al 2012;Hermuche et al 2013;Michon & Foresta 1996;Padoch & Pinedo-Vasquez 1996). Apesar de estas práticas contribuírem para o aumento da biodiversidade (Murgueitio et al 2011;Parrotta et al 1997) e da conectividade entre os fragmentos florestais (Bhagwat et al 2008;Perfecto & Vandermeer 2008;Perfecto & Vandermeer 2010), a maioria dos agricultores não planta árvores devido aos altos custos e falta de retorno financeiro (Engel & Parrotta 2001;Lamb et al 2005).…”

“…Os SSP são uma alternativa ecológica às pastagens convencionais, pois combinam em uma mesma área gado, plantas forrageiras, árvores, arbustos, herbáceas e palmeiras para complementação da alimentação animal e outros usos (Murgueitio et al 2011). Esses sistemas possuem maior biodiversidade e fornecem mais serviços ambientais que a pecuária convencional (Calle et al 2009;Haile et al 2010;Hermuche et al 2013;McAdam et al 2007). Além de mais ecológico, são considerados mais produtivos (Calle et al 2012;Dagang & Nair 2003), duradouros (Steinfeld et al 2006) e resilientes às mudanças climáticas (Calle et al 2009;Murgueitio et al 2011).…”