212
improve carbon capture by plants and soil (Garnett 2009 ). Finally, crop and live-
stock systems complement each other (Herrero et al. 2010 ).
If these roles of ruminant livestock are ignored, we could disrupt balanced socio-
economic and ecological systems, exacerbate human dietary problems in poor com-
munities, and magnify problems in sustainability and efficiency (the amount of food
produced per unit of land and water). In the end, ‘livestock’s long shadow’(FAO
2006 ) would become a self-fulfilling prophecy.
These considerations led Eisler et al. ( 2014 ) to use a broader context to plan the
contribution of ruminant animals to human food security. Four major needs were
identified for livestock management viz., (1) better animal health and welfare; (2)
selection of appropriate genotypes for the environment; (3) better environmental
footprint; (4) better livestock husbandry, nutrition and management.
In addition, Eisler et al. ( 2014 ) emphasised the need to reduce the consumption
of human food by livestock, an issue that is directly addressed by dryland grazing
systems because, in dryland, humans and ruminants are rarely competing for agri-
cultural resources. Many dryland zones cannot reliably produce human-edible
grains; even where such crops are possible, there are benefits from associations
between cropping and livestock systems (e.g., ecosystem services, pest manage-
ment, soil management). However, by the nature of their geographical and thus
climatic constraints, dryland environments are inherently variable within and among
years. This means that, for a production system, dryland systems are risky because
the animals will need to cope with unpredictable supplies of feed (quality, quantity,
timing) and water (Table 1 ). Climate change will exacerbate this unpredictability,
and also challenge temperature homeostasis in the animals. If not managed cor-
rectly, these problems will also raise societal concerns about the ethics of livestock
industries.
The solution is versatile production systems, a combination of versatile animals,
versatile forages and versatile management. The most appropriate combinations of
livestock genotypes, forage species and management will depend on local geo-
graphical and socio-economic factors, but the principles that underpin the structures
of versatile grazing systems will be consistent. The optimal system of husbandry
and management will ensure correct livestock nutrition and therefore good health
and welfare (reduced susceptibility to parasitism and infectious disease) and reduced
environmental impact per unit of product. Achieving these outcomes will maximise
productivity within the constraints of the environment.
In this chapter, we have described the risks associated with livestock production
in dryland regions and critically analysed some specific management solutions
developed to solve particular problems faced by livestock production in difficult
environments. In the last section, based on work done with Australian native shrubs
and pasture species, we have outlined a silvopastoral system, combined with man-
agement of animal behaviour to influence diet and habitat selection that offers inno-
vative and versatile options for the different types of livestock production in dryland
regions of the world.
D. Blache et al.