32 



BULLETIN 14i3, U. S. DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 



In some cases, ^Yhel■e such a move may not be feasible at this time 

 in full justice to all concerned, a cooperative herd by white and 

 Eskimo owners must continue. But the attempted splitting up of a 

 natural grazing unit, by dividing the herd and allowing the two 

 or more parts to remain on the same unit, is impracticable. 



With an allotment system in operation, definite assignment of 

 range among owners may be made and a protective management 

 ado])ted for each grazing unit. Such management would involve 

 stocking the range on the basis of actual carrying capacity and 

 proper control and distribution of stock in order to insure a uniform 

 utilization based on tlie forage requirement. Careful herding, con- 

 sti'uction of range improvements, and eventually the adoption of 

 range salting are important aids to proper control. 



SUMMER RANGE MANAGEMENT 



Protective management on summer ranges is a comparatively 

 simple problem, and a reath^ solution is to be found since it involves 

 a known (luantity. namely, herbaceous and shrub vegetation, as 

 grasses, sedges, herbs, and bi'owse. Valuable information that ap- 

 plies directly is available in the publications on forage and range 

 studies that have been conducted for many years on the grazing 

 areas of the western United States. The principles determined by 

 these studies apply to Alaska as well and may be followed in work- 

 ing out the management scheme. Proper seasonal grazing, deferred 

 and rotation grazing, open grazing, and proper distribution of stock 

 over the range must all be \mt into practice. 



WINTER RANGE MANAGEMENT 



The problem on winter range is more difficult. From the nature 

 of the lichen forage it is evident that the treatment in range man- 

 agement will have to be much different from that applicable to 

 such rai^id-growing forage crops as grasses, sedges, herbs, and 

 browse. Although one or two cro]ii)ings of herbs and grasses may 

 be safely permitted each season under a rotation grazing scheme of 

 thi'ee years, without sei'iously injuring the growth or lowering a 

 continued maximum forage yield, this could not be permitted with 

 the slow-growing lichen vegetation. Recovery from cropping in 

 this case rexpiires not one season or ])ai't of a season, but several 

 years. Instead of a thi-ee-j^ear deferred and rotation grazing 

 sclieiue. a more extended system will have to be woi-ked out ancl 

 a])]ilie(l. 



Alanagement of the winter reindeer ranges calls for a deferred 

 and i-otation scheme of grazing, but to what degree each area should 

 be gi'Mzed befoi'e deferring is still uncertain. Observations suggest 

 that ])i-obably one of two things nnist be done: (1) Eitlier close 

 utilizalion must be followed or (2) there must be a very light crop- 

 ping. Close utilization to remove all cover down to the frozen 

 ground will get the greatest value out of each crop and will open 

 up the cover for readiei- leprcxhict ion. It will also be the easier 

 method for the grazier. 



Light cropping, on the othei- hand, would re(|uire greater move- 

 ment of the hei'd. constant changing from one area to another, and 



