"Invasion Biology" Cowboys Turn to High-Tech Ear Tags to Monitor Animal Health Small, inexpensive tracking devices embedded in ear tags that work through cellular towers instead of costly, heavy GPS devices would revolutionize grassland restoration. This would allow ranchers to track their stock on open ranges. Controlling theft, minimizing straying and limiting searches for missing animals would fundamentally improve grass-fed ranch economics.
"Invasion Biology" Circle Ranch Game Cameras - July 2016 To be healthy, desert ranges need three things: (1) Large, concentrated migratory bison herds, or, cattle grazed to mimic bison’s migratory patterns; (2) a lot of predators of all sizes; and, (3) a high, diverse population of prey species. Remove any of these and the systems collapse. Most wildlife
la nina La Nina Weather Pattern Fading Means Wetter Fall and Winter The reports of imminent drought were greatly exaggerated. NOTE: This post initially appeared on NEWS4SanAntonio.com on Sept 14, 2016 SAN ANTONIO – We’ve been hearing for months now that our rain chances will be drying up thanks to a La Nina pattern that’s on the way. But that’
Bio-Diversity Wall Street Journal and Monsanto Claim that GMOs Are a Necessity—for Farmers and the Environment The Wall Street Journal publishes Monsanto’s claim that the World Health Organization has given GMOs a clean bill of health. But, is this true? Most GMOs have been modified to withstand pesticides, especially glyphosate-based Roundup. All corn, soy, cotton and many other crops are treated with glyphosate up to
"Wolves" Lessons from the Wild Lab at Yellowstone Park People will look back in 200-years and see the return of wolves in Yellowstone as a profound moment in habitat restoration ecology which will set a benchmark for the rest of the world. Let us hope that Texas’ wildlife “managers” take note.
Bio-Diversity As the Pool of Agribusiness Giants Shrinks, Will Innovation Follow? Stratfor is the most reliable international news and intelligence source now that our newspapers have become little more than mouthpieces for the monopolists who own them. Nevertheless, the idea that the super-concentrated agricultural companies have been innovators over the last decade shows the extent to which even independent thinkers have
Conservation Behind the Monsanto Deal, Doubts About the GMO Revolution When the agrochemical companies acquired the seed companies, something prohibited by antitrust law, their promise was that if the rules were relaxed, drought-resistant cereals and insect-resistant fruit would result from the capital and research strength of the acquiring agrochemical giants. This was bait and switch: GMO research has turned out
Animal Development What's the Beef with Antibiotics? The ubiquitous use of antibiotics in feedlots has greatly damaged public health and wildlife. NOTE: post initially appeared at KSAT.com on May 22, 2016 Ronald Baynes, DVM, PhD, Professor of Pharmacology at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine said, “We may want to test and see how soon after
"Invasion Biology" Circle Ranch Open Gate Day, August 26, 2016 On August 26, 2016, Holistic Management International (HMI) held an Open Gate educational day at Circle Ranch in far-West Texas. We demonstrated desert grassland restoration using ‘Plug and Spread’ water harvesting from eroded gullies, and Keyline contour plowing. Circle Ranch Open Gate, August 26, 2016 from Christopher Gill on Vimeo.
Animal Development Stop Killing Coyotes As repeatedly shown, predator “control” harms the species we seek to protect. In addition, there is the ethical issue of the control methods used, which true hunters would neither use, nor tolerate. NOTE: This post initially appeared on NYTimes.com on August 11, 2016 One morning in the late 1930s,
Animal Development Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) - America's Answer to Mad Cow Disease Here is a useful body of early information on Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD). CWD’s history has been revised considerably in the last 15-years. NOTE: This post is taken verbatim from MadCow.org Mad deer, mad elk: sources, definitions, and diagnosis CWD Video Successful transmission of CWD to primate and
Animal Development Quail Waterers Here is an interesting new quail waterer. While many quail experts say desert quail do not need water, noted quail expert Dr. Fred Guthery says that of all the quail work he has done, water additions are the single best practice. He is correct: In the desert, if you are
"Invasion Biology" Early Summer 2016 - Game Cameras Healthy ranges need: (1) Big nomadic grazers (bison or cows under planned grazing), (2) abundant predators and (3) lots of prey numbers and kinds. Take any one of these out and the system collapses. The systems’ need for biodiversity is a physiological fact, not a social concept. For 10-years in
"Invasion Biology" Desert Grassland Restoration: Creosote Bush CREOSOTE BUSH (Larrea tridentata) is generally misunderstood as an invader plant. In fact creosote is a symptom – but not the cause – of dying desert grasslands. Creosote will predominate as grasslands decline but eventually it also dies. 1. Creosote bush flowers and fruits Creosote bush is one of the most common
"Invasion Biology" Killing Wolves to Save Livestock May Backfire Why predator “control” increases predation.
Animal Development Where Cow Pies Really Matter Grass fed livestock works better for the land because plants need animals as much as animals need plants. NOTE: This post initially appeared on SAExpressNews.com on June 11, 2016 Proponents of grass-fed cattle, such as the ones here on Doug Havemann’s Mesquite Field Farm, say their cattle don’
"Invasion Biology" Killing Bighorn to Save Bighorn? It‘s hard to name a modern wildlife “management” practice that does not involve killing some plant or animal to “help” other plants or animals to the unintended detriment of all. The idea that humans can improve on nature would be laughable but for the damage being done to wild
Bio-Diversity Crop Performance in Farming Systems Trial It’s untrue that sustainable farming isn’t cost-effective compared to industrial agriculture. We don’t have to destroy our croplands to feed a hungry world. NOTE: This post initially appeared on RodaleInstitute.com on May 24, 2016 In its 35th year of existence, the Farming Systems Trial (FST) at
Animal Development Mid-Summer 2016 Game Cameras Do most of the species pictured below—and all of the predators—“compete” with each other and harm bighorn, mule deer, pronghorn and ecosystem health as the wildlife agencies say? Or do they complement each other? Is biodiversity good or bad for our deserts? Recent studies of the Serengeti shed
Animal Development Too Many Deer on the Road? Let Cougars Return, Study Says Predator removals are the most unnatural of all our wildlife “management” perversions. Restoring predators is the cheapest and quickest way to deal with excess deer and feral pigs, thereby rebalancing wildlife populations. Predators also do the best job of removing sick animals, protecting healthy deer, elk and bighorn from animal
News Native Camels of North America Are Camels Natives to North America? The question of whether llamas and camels are natives or exotics in North America exposes the many contradictions inherent in the phony science of invasive species “biology.” Millions of years ago the camel family – camelids – evolved in North America, eventually dividing into at least
blue-origin Good Results From Our One Chute Out Test Blue Origin continues its testing of spacecraft next door to Circle Ranch in far-West Texas. On our most recent flight, we performed a test to prove the Crew Capsule could safely land with only two of its three parachutes open. On a nominal flight with all three parachutes deployed, the
book-reviews Book Review - The Apache Wars: The Hunt for Geronimo, the Apache Kid, and the Captive Boy Who Started the Longest War in American History Dr. Paul Hutton has delivered a highly rewarding volume in The Apache Wars; it fully covers the American Apache Wars, revealing many new facts about the characters and agencies involved. It is well written, making it an entertaining read; but it is also a chilling account of barbarities and the
"Invasion Biology" Wildlife, Habitat Flourishing in High Desert Mountains of Far West Texas Gary Joiner and I became friends when he was Executive Director of Texas Wildlife Association, and I was on his board. He has a weekly radio show on wildlife, for which I gave this short interview. For more Texas Wildlife Radio Show / Texas Farm Bureau reports visit: http://texasfarmbureau.org/
"Invasion Biology" Biodiversity Benefiting Wildlife, Plants on Circle Ranch Wildlife population, habitat flourish in far West Texas Note: This originally appeared in Texas Wildlife Radio Show / Texas Farm Bureau reports Circle Ranch is a 32,000-acre high-desert mountain ranch located in the Sierra Diablo (Devil Mountains) of Hudspeth County in far West Texas. Range and wildlife habitat conditions right
