Document Type : Research Paper
Authors
Abstract
This research was carried out to study the effect of livestock grazing on dynamics of vegetation patches in rangelands of Incheh Boroun, North Gorgan plain. To achieve this goal, the dynamic parameters including the length of vegetation patches and bare area distances between consecutive vegetation patches inside and outside the enclosure were measured. First of all, a random point was selected outside the exclosure as starting point and then 11 transects with 50 meters length were placed in a randomized sequential order. The length of vegetation patches and free vegetation spaces were recorded along each transect. Sampling inside the exclosure was done similarly through setting up six 50-meter transect Results showed significant differences in length of vegetation patches, inter patches and ratio of vegetation patches length to inter patches length in both studied regions. Overgrazing outside the exclosure was considered for this result. Since environmental stresses reveal their impacts through changing the shape, frequency and size of vegetation patches, it seems that studying the length of vegetation patches and inter patches has high accuracy and can be done with relatively less time and costs. In addition, it could well represent dynamic changes of plants in response to environmental stresses and desertification process.
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