Livestock Grazing, the Neglected Land Use

摘要: Livestock production plays a key role in national and regional economies, for food security poverty alleviation, the climate system, biodiversity, biogeochemical cycles of carbon, nitrogen water. In near future, importance livestock is bound to increase due anticipated economic developments associated changes human diets many parts world as well need feed growing, increasingly urbanized population. Ruminant occurs on grazing lands that extend over approximately one-third terrestrial ice-free surface. addition, significant proportion cropland produce used feedstock animals, whether monogastric or ruminant species. Despite this central Earth datasets would allow systematic, comprehensive analyses are extremely scarce, if not nonexistent, prone extreme uncertainties. The largest data gaps relate extent intensity activities. Furthermore, no statistics available an assessment amount biomass harvested each year lands. contribution, we provide examples how socioecological method inventory can improve knowledge base by, example, allowing researchers make robust approximation flows estimate land use. Based empirical analyses, elaborate current state research global grazing, identify important uncertainties outline possible contributions neglected but aspect