The use of conditional probability functions in range data analysis and simulation

Abstract

Managers and range scientists are interested in the response of such variables as forage production and animal performance to various environmental and management factors. Due to the inability to control many of the factors affecting range systems, production responses should include distributional information in addition to their expected values. Recent developments in the estimation of conditional probability distribution functions provide the range scientist with a practical procedure to more fully characterize variable responses. The conditional probability distribution approach is applied to an analysis of forage production data from the literature. An illustration of the procedure in range decision analysis derives distributional information on animal performance and net return under several different steer stocking levels.