A brief introduction to rangeland management in Yavapai County
About 75 percent of Yavapai County’s land is public and used as rangeland. Research specialist Caleb Miller outlines what rangelands are and how they are used and monitored.
Cooperative Extension
Range is especially important in Yavapai County, as about 75 percent of our county’s land is public and almost all of that is rangeland. I’ve been working in Yavapai county as a research specialist for range monitoring and now as an assistant in Extension and two of the most common questions I get are: What are rangelands. and what is rangeland management? Although most people in range tend to have slightly different definitions of a rangeland, it usually falls along the lines of land with native vegetation that can't be cultivated for crops and is managed as a natural landscape with the potential for grazing. Basically, if animals (livestock and wildlife) can graze an area, it has native plants and you can’t irrigate it, it’s a rangeland. This broad definition means all sorts of ecosystems can be rangelands, from deserts and grasslands to forests and tundra. In fact, rangelands cover over 50 percent of the world’s land surface.
Managing public lands such as Prescott National Forest or Agua Fria National Monument is often done using rangeland management techniques, such as livestock grazing or prescribed fire. Further, Yavapai has a rich history of ranching, and according to the Census of Agriculture, we sold about $17.7 million in cattle products. Range management impacts almost all of Yavapai County, with the ranchers using responsible stewardship of our public lands, ensuring that we have a sustainable future and a strong economy.
Rangeland management is a broad field. Range professionals are very concerned with ensuring the stewardship of the land is cared for responsibly, allowing for both the land and all who utilize it to thrive. Range professionals have countless specialties, with some having expertise in wildlife, others in ranching and grazing management and some in law, policy and the social science of range management. Hydrology, botany, meteorology and climatology, animal science and nutrition and soil science all have their niches within the ecology of the rangeland management umbrella as we all work towards the responsible stewardship of rangelands.
Caleb Miller is an assistant in Extension in Yavapai County where he is responsible for running the range program, predominantly through range monitoring.