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What Drives the Conversion of Native Rangeland to Buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare) Pasture in Mexico’s Sonoran Desert?: The Social Dimensions of a Biological Invasion

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Abstract

The introduction of invasive exotic plants has many social dimensions. Although a diverse literature identifies some of the social drivers of exotic plant introduction and subsequent invasion, relatively little attention has been given to the motives of individuals involved. This research focuses on the extensive conversion of native rangeland to exotic buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare) pasture by ranchers in Mexico’s Sonoran Desert using data gathered through systematic interviews and ordinary least squares regression modeling to demonstrate how a few social variables determine the extent of buffelgrass introductions. Results show that land allocation to pasture is determined chiefly by ranch size, with significant roles also played by rotational grazing, buffelgrass seed harvest, and exposure to government research. Results are contextualized and explored in depth, illustrating how the extent of rangeland-to-pasture conversion in this part of the Sonoran Desert is determined by direct and indirect social factors. The study also highlights implications for buffelgrass invasion.

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Notes

  1. All of the ranches in this study (and for that matter at the site) would be considered large in the Sonoran context (Camou Healy 1998). A 50,000-ha land entitlement was not uncommon; one rancher not included in the interview sample reported holdings of more than 200,000 ha, a large fraction of which had been converted to buffelgrass pasture.

  2. Seed still represents a relatively small fraction of the total cost of pasture conversion (9–25% by official figures), so it is unlikely that even drastic increases in seed costs would prevent a rancher from planting buffelgrass.

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Acknowledgments

I thank Clark University’s Graduate School of Geography, the University of Arizona’s Office of Arid Lands Studies, and Colgate University’s Department of Geography for support during the research and writing of this article. I thank the local cattle association and people of Caborca, Sonora, Mexico for their cooperation. The work was funded by a National Science Foundation Graduate Research Fellowship. Peter Klepeis and B. L. Turner II provided valuable comments on previous drafts. All responsibility for outstanding errors is my own.

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Brenner, J.C. What Drives the Conversion of Native Rangeland to Buffelgrass (Pennisetum ciliare) Pasture in Mexico’s Sonoran Desert?: The Social Dimensions of a Biological Invasion. Hum Ecol 38, 495–505 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10745-010-9331-5

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