Rattlesnake grass
Family: Gramineae |
"The demise of native vegetation in the Great Central Valley goes back to the period of Spanish missions in the 1700s. Originally, there were some 23 million acres ( 9 million ha) of California prairie. Its disappearance is not a consequence of grazing per se, because Valley Grassland evolved for millions of years in association with large mammalian grazers. Rather, the problem is overgrazing. Whereas native large mammals migrated seasonally, the numbers were kept in check by natural ecological constraints, domestic mammals may occur year-round or in numbers that far exceed carrying capacity. The Spanish introduced small, long-horned cattle and small, long legged sheep known as Churro. As the missions spread northward, the numbers of livestock increased phenomenally. At the height of the mission period, there were about 400,000 head of cattle and 300,000 sheep. In addition, there were large numbers of horses and mules, many of which had gone wild."
Allan Schoenherr; A Natural History of California
|
Home
