Changes of photosynthetic pigments of Artemisia diffusa under the influence of grazing stress of livestock grazing in Karnabchul semi-desert, Uzbekistan

On the transformed natural rangelands of Karnabchul desert, the natural Artemisia diffusa studied four different grazing intensities the change in the amount of photosynthetic pigments (chlorophyll a, chlorophyll b, carotenoids). It was found that the amount of A. diffusa pigments also increased with increasing stress levels in livestock grazing. In general, different grazing intensities had a different impact on the morphological and physiological traits of plants, especially their photosynthetic pigments

Identifying Grazing-Driven Plant Indicators of Rangeland Degradation in Semi Arid Zones of Uzbekistan

The development of practical indicators of vegetation degradation is an important element in predicting and assessing rangeland health due to disturbances such as livestock grazing. Once established, phytoindicators provide a simple and visual operative way to diagnose active and possibly undesirable vegetation changes. This paper aimed to identify rapid, yet realistic and easily communicated plant indicators of rangeland degradation caused by intense grazing. The grazing gradient approach is applied to study plant traits affected by increased levels of grazing pressure. Qualitative and quantitative changes in key species of the plant community alongside successive changes of vegetation attributes along an apparent grazing gradient were used as potential indicators for detection of rangeland degradation. The presence of different environmental (edaphic properties) and management (grazing regime) conditions in two study sites allowed selection of fine scale plant indicators. Effective use of rapid assessment plant indicators in rangeland monitoring provides a baseline for improved rangeland management practices to prevent further degradation processes

Sustainable Rangeland Management Toolkit for Resilient Pastoral Systems

This toolkit is a collection of adaptable site-specific Sustainable Rangeland Management practices that developed to manage rangelands in the dry areas, achieving a neutral level of degradation and offering a strong potential to restore degraded rangelands. It is a result of collaboration among three institutions – the International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), the International Center for Agriculture Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA) and the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). The flexibility of the SRM toolbox within different agroecological scenarios raises its potential for upscale across the dry areas

Farming with alternative pollinators increases yields and incomes of cucumber and sour cherry

International audienceAbstractPollinator decline is acknowledged worldwide and constitutes a major subject of environmental research. Nevertheless, farmers’ efforts to protect pollinators in agricultural lands remain very limited, in particular if no compensation scheme is applicable. Current research focuses on measuring pollinator diversity in different landscapes, but research on income gains, due to habitat enhancement and high pollinator diversity, may have greater potential to induce farmers’ field management changes. In 2012, it was suggested for the first time that farmers’ motivation would be triggered if the demonstration was made that enhancing pollinator habitats, with a novel approach of farming with alternative pollinators, can increase yield and income. In 2013–2014, therefore, a 18-month-pilot project was set on a participatory basis in Uzbekistan, to test this farming with alternative pollinators approach on field and orchard crops. The practicability and the potential of the approach were tested in collaboration with seven smallholders, two commercial farmers, and two schools. We analyzed the yield and insect diversity (pollinators, predators, and pests) of seven cucumber fields in the Parkent district and four orchards of sour cherry in the Boysun district in Uzbekistan. Here we show that the fields with enhanced habitats faced higher diversity of pollinators and predators, but less pests than control fields. Furthermore, the farming with alternative pollinators approach doubled the yield of sour cherry in 2014 and highly increased the income from cucumber in 2013. In 2014, however, a climatic disaster influenced the results on cucumber in Parkent district. Ultimately, 94% of the farmers were willing to enhance pollinator habitats after being informed of these higher-yield figures. If more projects confirm that farming with alternative pollinators creates an economically self-sustaining incentive for farmers to improve habitats, this approach could contribute considerably to global pollinator protection and food security

Raw data -- Lucero et al. 2019 ENEMY RELEASE

Establishment of Bromus tectorum plants in cages open to and protected from rodents in Iran and the USA, and seed removal (i.e., preference) patterns of rodents in Iran, Uzbekistan, and the USA

Sensitivity of Landsat 7 & 8-derived vegetation indices on semi-arid rangelands of southwestern Uzbekistan

Consistent use of vegetation indices (VIs) for monitoring rangeland ecosystems in Middle Asia, and particularly Uzbekistan has been limited. In the face of intense rangeland degradation in Uzbekistan, understanding the applicability of VIs is an immediate priority for the assessment of the current state of these rangelands. This article focuses on comparing and evaluating the potential of five intensively used VIs (NDVI, SAVI, EVI, PVI and TSAVI) to detect changes in condition and productivity of Artemisia spp. rangelands across different seasons and years. The results indicate a high degree of similarity in the response of the tested VIs when multi-season and multi-year vegetation data were combined. However, there was significant variability when vegetation data were parsed into seasons and/or variable precipitation years. We recommend that a remote sensing assessment of rangelands in various stages of invasion by native non-palatable plants should rely on a multi-season analysis of NDVI or SAVI