Conservation

A collection of 844 posts

Bio-Diversity

Bayer Proposes to Acquire Monsanto

American food production is increasingly dominated by a few trans-national conglomerates which have no commitment to any country, let alone to the welfare of the American people. “Conservatism” has somehow come to support the evolution of competitive markets into uncompetitive markets in which every industry is dominated by a few

"Invasion Biology"

Book Review: The Serengeti Rules: The Quest to Discover How Life Works and Why It Matters

The Serengeti Rules: The Quest to Discover How Life Works and Why It Matters by Sean B. Carroll is a great book about nature’s basic rules and contains many valuable insights on desert grasslands. While Carroll didn’t intend to write a book about holistic management, The Serengeti Rules

"Invasion Biology"

Jim Howell – Conserving and Restoring the World’s Grasslands

Take the time to listen to this great interview with our friend Jim Howell, in which he explains how cattle ranching can restore rangeland viability. NOTE: post initially appeared on MountainPrarie.com Jim Howell is the CEO of Grasslands LLC, which is the land management arm of the Savory Institute,

"Invasion Biology"

HMI Open Gate Day - August 26 2016

HMI Open Gate: Circle Ranch Day Helping Water Flow Where it Needs to Go – August 26, 2016. Circle Ranch, Van Horn, TX Our Circle Ranch Day is part of HMI’s Open Gate Learning Series. Open Gates are on-the-ground learning days for producers and consumers who care about land health

Animal Development

Feathers From Wind Farms Can Meet Apaches’ Needs

A Justification for Windfarms? Windfarms are a boondoggle.  Wind farm electricity costs six times as much per kilowatt hour as conventional: If your energy bill is $10,000 per year but you are content to pay $60,000 then wind power is for you! This calculation ignores damage to land

climate change

New Drought in Far-West Texas?

“El Niño-La Niña are reciprocating patterns that create wet and dry conditions on the land, and simultaneously, conditions of abundance and famine in the marine environments. In the Galapagos Islands for example, warmer water from El Niño means more rain on the land but a famine for birds and animals

"Invasion Biology"

Spring 2016 Game Cameras

Biodiversity is Good, not Bad Because plants need animals as much as animals need plants, a biodiverse plant community requires a biodiverse animal community. Conventional wildlife “management” and “conservation” theory says that most of the animals, and especially the predators pictured below harm “native” plants and animals, through “competition”, and

"Invasion Biology"

Book Review: Woody Plants of the Big Bend and Trans-Pecos

This is a very useful book to the far-West Texas and Southern New Mexico landowner. Every landowner should try to know these plants by sight. Over 100 common trees, shrubs, cacti and other plants are identified and described. These are photographed as shrubs, in leaf detail, flower detail and seed

"Texas History"

Book Review: The Son - A Great Texas History

Here is a typical review of The Son, by Philipp Meyer, “a multi-generational story that takes on the myths of Texas history as well as American History”. Have you ever felt as a reader that you were reading a novel of near perfection? A book where every sentence, paragraph, character,

Bio-Diversity

Farmers Put Down the Plow for More Productive Soil

Holistic farming concepts are completely portable to rangeland management.  The goal of all ranch managers should be the increase of soil fertility.  From this, all else will follow.   Article originally posted to NYTimes.com on March 9, 2015   FORT WORTH — Gabe Brown is in such demand as a speaker that

Conservation

Are Parasites Good for Animal Health?

The the word “parasite” often reflects misunderstandings about the interconnected nature of life. There are 10 times as many micro-organic cells and 250 times as many micro-organic genes in our bodies, as human cells and genes. We would quickly die without these, and yet they are considered parasites. Parasites including

"Invasion Biology"

Game Cameras - February 2016

In far-West Texas, a coalition of government agencies, agricultural universities and conservation organizations has decreed that on public lands more than half of the species pictured below should be severely reduced or removed altogether to help bighorn, pronghorn and deer. The coalition claims that all “exotics” and many “natives” including

Bio-Diversity

Grain Traders Rejecting New Monsanto Soybeans

Monsanto is in trouble because it released seeds without EU approval. Why would it: New poisons and associated seeds are routinely approved without testing. What should upset everyone is this: “The latest Monsanto seeds contain new genetic technology that allows soybean plants to withstand a new and more powerful herbicide,

"Invasion Biology"

Cows and Elk - A Symbiotic Relationship

When grazed properly, cattle can be very beneficial for elk. Cattle are similar in their grazing impact to bison; bison and elk were mutually dependent for many thousands of years in North America. NOTE: originally published in HMI In Practice Newsletter May June 2013

"Invasion Biology"

Feral Hogs Pegged as One of Top Contaminators of San Antonio River

Since Europeans arrived in Texas, pigs have roamed our river bottoms, fattening on acorns and mast and in so doing, stimulating plants. Before the Civil War, these were gathered seasonally, slaughtered and the meat provided the primary cash crop for Hill Country farmers. At the time of the Civil War,

Cattle

Restoring Deserts: The Grasslands Story

Using the capital markets to further conservation through holistic ranching. The Grasslands Story …by Jim Howell Grasslands LLC is a for profit ranch/farm management company. Our company was originally a part of the Savory Institute, founded in 2009 by myself and my wife, Daniela, Tony Malmberg, Allan Savory, Jody

chemicals

Contaminating Our Bodies With Everyday Products

Big Wildlife is interdependent with the agrochemical giants. Their poisons are harming human health, and even worse, destroying the soil fertility on which civilization depends.   NOTE: post originally appeared on NYTimes.com on November 28, 2015   In recent weeks, two major medical organizations have issued independent warnings about toxic chemicals

"Invasion Biology"

State of Texas - Resolution H.R. No. 2159: Legislation to Change the "Exotic" Classification of Elk

Elk are a Texas native which , before Europeans, roamed our state from north to south and east to west. For years a group of us have attempted to remove the “exotic” classification which has led to so much perversity in the treatment of this animal.   In the last legislature, despite

"Invasion Biology"

Parks and Wildlife Begins Reducing Deer Population at Texas Mountain Ranch

CWD and high-fenced deer go hand in hand. Chronic Wasting Disease was created in a government-funded, high-fenced experimental wildlife facility near Fort Collins, Colorado. They won’t say what was being done to these confined animals, but instead spin the story to imply CWD appeared spontaneously. The same agencies that

Cattle

Desert Grassland Restoration: Using Cattle to Stop Erosion

Second in a series on “animal impact”, this video shows cows being used to re-grow grass in deadspots, and how cows can help stop erosion by healing gully headcuts. Animal Impact Made Easy #2 from Christopher Gill on Vimeo.

Bio-Diversity

Restoring Desert Grasslands with Intensive Grazing

There are lots of ways to get animal impact onto ranges. Australia: Same idea, smaller scale at Circle Ranch, in the high-desert mountains of far-West Texas: Animal Impact Made Easy #1 from Christopher Gill on Vimeo. Animal Impact Made Easy #2 from Christopher Gill on Vimeo.

Animal Development

In Australia, Cowboys Use Satellites to Home In on the Range

Technology is making holistic planned grazing cheaper and easier. NOTE: Post initially appeared on WSJ.com on January 24, 2016 Ranchers saddle up satellites to track herds; water-trough weigh-ins Murray Grey has a beef with traditional ranching methods. Each year in punishing heat, Mr. Grey has mounted a horse to

"Invasion Biology"

Circle Ranch Game Cameras - Winter 2015

Below you will see many wildlife photos showing our mixed species sharing range and water. Note the areas frequented by different species. Elk do well everywhere, particularly in the desert, which means elk are potential rescue species for empty deserts. Bulls would be worth $10,000 – $15,000 if allowed

Bio-Diversity

Cover Crops, a Farming Revolution With Deep Roots in the Past

Gardeners readily understand the following: “Modern farming practices like applying fertilizer and herbicides and not tilling their fields, or “no till,” have helped farmers increase yields and reduced labor, but they have also unintentionally interfered with root systems, increased erosion and disrupted underground microbial activity and insect life that are

"Invasion Biology"

Restoring Grasslands with Planned Grazing: Soil Carbon Curious

Adaptive Multi-Paddock grazing (AMP grazing) is regenerating soils around the world, producing healthy grass-finished beef. But the science on AMP grazing is sparse, to say the least. Now, a group of leading soil, rangeland, bug and social scientists are setting out to fill the science gap. Led by Dr. Richard