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Grazing management on Dutch dunes
Grazing by domestic stock has not been practiced to any great degree since
about the 1900s. As a result many dunes have become overgrown with coarse grasses,
scrub and woodland. In order to combat the loss of dune species a series of
trial in the reintroduction of domestic stock has been attempted.
Table:
Type of stock and stock numbers used to provide an indication of the wide
variety of grazing regimes available to the dune manager. The results of these
trials are presented in a summary paper (van
Dijk 1992).
| Site |
Animal |
Area grazed
|
Stock numbers
|
| Terschelling |
Moorland sheep |
22ha
|
22
|
| Zwanenwater |
Cattle (& 2 horses) |
160ha
|
28
|
| Texel |
Sheep |
800ha
|
500-600
|
| Voorne |
Icelandic ponies |
130ha
|
12
|
| |
Limousin cattle |
30ha
|
?
|
| Middelduinen |
Sheep |
116ha
|
300-500
|
Caveat: No indication of the period or timing of the grazing is provided.
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Guidance on monitoring: Monitoring using false cover aerial photographs
has been undertaken at Mijendel dunes, Holland to assess the effectiveness
of cattle grazing in reducing grass encroachment (by wood small-reed Calamagrostis
epigegos) in order to restore species-rich dune grassland and a
more dynamic structure to the dune. Monitoring vegetation change was undertaken
using a land-cover hierarchy which was identifiable on false colour aerial
photographs. The results of the study indicate that use of this technique
is cost effective and accurate and suggests that the approach should be
reviewed more closely as a monitoring tool (van
der Hagen et al. 2001).
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References
van der Hagen, H.G.J.M., van Til, M. & Droesen, W.J.
2001.
Cost-benefit analysis of various orthophoto scales in the evaluation of grazing management in Dutch coastal sand dunes.
In: Coastal Dune Management: Shared Experience of European Conservation Practice, eds.Houston, J.A., Edmondson, S.E. & Rooney, P.J.Liverpool University Press, 380-392.
van Dijk, H.W.J.
1992.
Grazing domestic levestock in Dutch coastal dunes: experiments, experiences and perspectives.
In: Coastal Dunes. Geomorphology, Ecology and Management: Proceedings of the Third European Dune Congres, eds.Carter, R.W.G., Curtis, T.G.F. & Sheehy-Skeffington, M.J.A.A. Balkema, Rotterdam, 235-250.
Abstract...
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