Abstract

COCHI, Néstor et al. Methodology for assessing the productive capacity and the socio-ecological dynamics of livestock in high Andean wetlands. Ecología en Bolivia [online]. 2014, vol.49, n.3, pp.120-131. ISSN 1605-2528.

High-Andean wetlands (bofedales) provide crucial resources for the inhabitants of the Altiplano, among which pasture for camelid livestock. This resource is particularly vulnerable in the face of the effects of climate change. In this context, overgrazing may drive bofedales' functioning beyond a threshold of sustainability, leading to an overall degradation of both the diversity and productivity of these keystone ecosystems. The purpose of this methodological contribution is to present a number of easy-to-apply methods to evaluate the productive capacity and the sustainability of high Andean bofedales, taking the bofedales of the Cordillera Real (La Paz Department, Bolivia) as a model. Such an approach is meant to sustain livestock production in this region. First, we describe methods to collect vegetation data (plant diversity, relative vegetation cover, dry matter quantity) so as to estimate the current potential of bofedales as a nutrient resource for livestock. This data collection can be made with help of contact points along 30-50 m line transects. Second, we put together these data with an estimation of livestock abundance in order to characterize the carrying capacity of each bofedal, which is directly correlated with the long-term maintenance of the resources provided by these ecosystems. Our third specific objective is to discuss briefly simple methods for characterizing the operating systems at work in bofedales. Acquiring these data is expected to refine our knowledge of the potential productivity and sustainability of High-Andean bofedales. It should permit optimizing their long-term management.

Keywords : Animal carrying capacity; High-Andean wetlands; Line transect; Pasture; Vegetation biomass.

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