Animal Production and Phytodiversity in Semi-natural Grasslands of the Aso Region, Japan
Okamoto, Chinobu;Kabata, Kiyotaka(Kyushu Tokai University, Kumamoto, Japan)E-mail:[email protected]
In this review, we present the results of our ten years of study on beef cattle production as a means of preserving phytodiversity and landscape in the semi-natural grasslands of the Aso region of Japan. There are about 16,000 ha of semi-natural grasslands in the region. The grasslands are maintained for animal production through such activities as grazing, mowing, and controlled burning. The Shannon's diversity index values, as measured in the present study, were higher in the grazed sites than in the abandoned sites. The grazing activities thus seem to create suitable habitats for coexisting herbaceous species.
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