AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2016 • NEBRASKAland 27
sunflower they see. Sometimes it can be hard to tell whether
that kind of behavior reflects a smart diet or just an artist's
temperament. Regardless, selective grazing by cattle results
in a patchiness no mower can create.
While it can be hard to predict the day-to-day dietary
choices of individual cows, the overall grazing behavior of
a herd is predictable enough that a land manager can set up
grazing regimes aimed at specific wildlife habitat objectives.
Perhaps the most useful grazing treatment for wildlife
habitat is aggressive season-long grazing in a pasture
followed by a couple years of rest. The repeated grazing of
plants throughout the entire growing season does a couple
important things. First, it creates and maintains a short
vegetation structure that is valuable for a number of species.
Fire and mowing can create short structure, too, but the
result is temporary because vegetation starts growing back as
soon as the treatment ends. Second, grazing the same plant
repeatedly weakens it enough that it can take a year or more
to regrow its root mass. In the meantime, the loss of vigor by
intensively grazed plants – especially grasses – temporarily
opens up space for a profusion of 'weedy' plants. The
resulting combination of short, weak grasses and tall, broad-
leaved plants might be the most valuable and uncommon
habitat structure in grasslands. It creates excellent brood-
rearing habitat for grouse, quail and other grassland birds. It
also provides favorable conditions for many insect, mammal
and reptile species.
The stocking rate in a season-long intensive grazing
pasture determines which plants will be grazed and how
much of each plant is consumed. A light stocking rate
allows cattle to be picky about their diet, and they eat only
the best parts of their favorite plants. Under higher stocking
Cattle can help wildlife managers maintain plant diversity for pollinators and other wildlife by selectively grazing grasses,
tipping the competitive balance toward wildflowers as seen at The Nature Conservancy's Platte River Prairies.
