Pasturing of livestock in forests has had profound consequences for Europe's landscapes. In Białowieża Primeval Forest (BPF), cattle pasturing was a part of traditional forest use that ceased only in the second half of the twentieth century. We collected information on the institutional changes governing forest cattle pasturing and the changes in spatial extent of cattle presence in BPF in last...

We present depth-resolved grazing incidence x-ray diffraction, grazing incidence small angle scattering and x-ray reflectivity studies on the structure of mixed C(60) and diindinoperylene (DIP) films as a function of the mixing ratio. We observe enhanced out-of-plane order and smoothing of the mixed films compared to pure films upon coevaporation of DIP:C(60) thin films (in different mixing rat...

We show that a higher vertebrate can graze surficial intertidal biofilm, previously only considered a food source for rasping invertebrates and a few specialized fish. Using evidence from video recordings, stomach contents, and stable isotopes, we describe for the first time the grazing behavior of Western Sandpipers (Calidris mauri) and estimate that biofilm accounts for 45-59% of their total ...

Large mammalian grazers can alter the biotic and abiotic features of their environment through their impacts on vegetation. Grazing at moderate intensity has been recommended for biodiversity conservation. Few studies, however, have empirically tested the benefits of moderate grazing intensity in systems dominated by native grazers. Here we investigated the relationship between (1) density of n...

Rotational grazing management strategies have been promoted as a way to improve the sustainability of native grass-based pasture systems. From disturbance ecology theory, rotational grazing relative to continuous grazing can increase pasture productivity by allowing vegetation to recover after short intense grazing periods. This project sought to assess whether soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks ...

Advances in global positioning system (GPS) technology have dramatically enhanced the ability to track and study distributions of free-ranging livestock. Understanding factors controlling the distribution of free-ranging livestock requires the ability to assess when and where they are foraging. For four years (2008-2011), we periodically collected GPS and activity sensor data together with dire...

InfiltraGon rde and sediment production were measured for 2 years on 3 pastures from an intensive rotational grazing system. The pastures were 32,24, and 16 ha in size. Stocking rate was held constant but stocking density at any given point in time varied due to pasture size. Stocking densities were 0.68,0.51, and 0.32 ha/AU, respectively. Within the respective treatments, midgrass interspa ces...

Overgrazing is considered one of the key disturbance factors that results in alpine grassland degradation in Tibet. Grazing exclusion by fencing has been widely used as an approach to restore degraded grasslands in Tibet since 2004. Is the grazing exclusion management strategy effective for the vegetation restoration of degraded alpine grasslands? Three alpine grassland types were selected in T...

The complex nano-morphology of modern soft-matter materials is successfully probed with advanced grazing-incidence techniques. Based on grazing-incidence small- and wide-angle X-ray and neutron scattering (GISAXS, GIWAXS, GISANS and GIWANS), new possibilities arise which are discussed with selected examples. Due to instrumental progress, highly interesting possibilities for local structure anal...