To determine the impact of packhorse (Equus caballus) grazing on mountain meadows in southwestern Montana, Olson-Rutz et al. measured vegetation one and two years following single or repeated 4-, 8-, or 18-hour picket grazing by horses, during July, August, and September. The sample size in this study was not large enough to detect significant differences, however, adequate sample size numbers and general trends in the data were reported. The data, do, however, suggest that a single period of heavy grazing (18 hours per picket circle) or moderate (8 hours) repeated grazing through a summer can reduce vegetal and litter cover, increase bare soil cover, and reduce grass stem counts. These changes could be precursors to a shift in plant community composition. The authors conclude with that by controlling when, how long, and how frequent packstock graze a meadow, recreational horse use may be managed to meet desired wildland management objectives. The challenge of managing wildland packstock use is to develop a mutually supported packstock management plan which can then be monitored with the resources available to the local wildland manager.
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