Livestock and Plant Invasions

Using natural landscapes for any purpose requires caution to prevent plant invasions. An essential task for nature conservation is explaining this to the public.

Cattle in the Sonoran Desert. Heavily trampled soil without soil microorganisms that can absorb and store moisture, convert solar energy to nutrients, increase plant root efficiency, and protect the soil surface from erosion and invasive plants. Photo by George Wuerthner.

Most investigations of plant invasions assign responsibility to Humans. In our ignorance, we introduce potentially invasive plants from foreign ecosystems, and then we disturb native ecosystems and help the introduced plants get established and spread. We have learned that diseases, predators, competitors, and supportive soil microorganisms control plant growth. Move plants to new locations where their natural controls aren’t present and they sometimes explode across the landscape. Continue reading →