| dc.creator | Godinot,Florent | |
| dc.creator | Somarriba,Eduardo | |
| dc.creator | Finegan,Bryan | |
| dc.creator | Delgado Rodríguez,Diego | |
| dc.date | 2020-12-01 | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2023-09-25T14:30:15Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2023-09-25T14:30:15Z | |
| dc.identifier | http://www.scielo.sa.cr/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S2215-38962020000200020 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | https://repositorioslatinoamericanos.uchile.cl/handle/2250/8821154 | |
| dc.description | Abstract (Introduction): In the dry regions of Central America, forests in cattle ranches are used as a refuge for cattle during the dry season, and there is no much information about this practice. (Objective): to determine the frequency of this practice and how it fits in farm management. (Methodology): We conducted semi-structured interviews with cattle ranchers in 43 farms in Liberia County, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. (Results): Cattle farmers suffered from the loss of profitability due to droughts, fire, and cattle theft. Cattle browsing in the forest was used by 70 % of farms, mostly between March and May. No type of farm or feeding strategy was associated with forest browsing. The high variability in farm management did not provide a distinct classification of feeding strategies. We found a difference in farm structure and feed types between ranches in the plains and mountain slopes. The decision to use forests for browsing seemed to rely on a trade-off between animal welfare and ease of management. Traditional knowledge about cattle behavior in forests was variable and often limited to forest edges and pastures. (Conclusions): This research shows that forests should be taken into consideration when analyzing cattle ranching in dry regions of Central America. We recommend a further study on feeding strategies and the impact of cattle on forest integrity to determine if agricultural policymakers should foster these low-costs | |
| dc.format | text/html | |
| dc.language | en | |
| dc.publisher | Universidad Nacional | |
| dc.relation | 10.15359/rca.54-2.2 | |
| dc.rights | info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess | |
| dc.source | Revista de Ciencias Ambientales v.54 n.2 2020 | |
| dc.subject | Browsing | |
| dc.subject | Cattle ranching | |
| dc.subject | Ecosystem-based adaptation | |
| dc.subject | Mesoamerican Dry Corridor | |
| dc.subject | Seasonally dry tropical forests | |
| dc.title | Secondary Tropical Dry Forests Are Important to Cattle Ranchers in Northwestern Costa Rica | |
| dc.type | info:eu-repo/semantics/article | |
