Trampling Losses and Travel by Cattle on Sandhills Range

Abstract

Trampling losses by cattle on sandhills range varied from about 1% of the grass herbage or 20 pounds per acre under light grazing to 5% or 60 pounds per acre with heavy grazing. The various sandhill grasses differed in their susceptibility to trampling in July and September. In lightly grazed 50-acre pastures, yearling cattle averaged 1.5 miles of travel per day compared to 2.0 in moderate and heavily grazed pastures.