UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 
eo * * 
‘. eae ac i 
v7 
DEPARTMENT BULLETIN No. 1358 
Washington, D. C. 
RANGE WATERING PLACES IN THE SOUTHWEST" 
By M. W. TAwsot, Grazing Examiner, Forest Service 
CONTENTS 
Page Page 
MMMOdUCTIONa=— 2228) ee CUE SSF HEN SS srt Ee re ee Se 10 
Importance of water development to Pp Cheeni e Sanne REE Ree aoe eS eae cate ih 
the livestock industry_____-__-—-_--- P47 NAVE VCCI (eee NI IS ee 12 
Water requirements of range animals__ SOR WAV UTILS eects A cose 12 
Necesssity of sufficient watering places Water storage______ a ANT: 
to. prevent overgrazing around AEST OUIS NS Seeeona seen eee Sa ee spend ey 
Bude [i [peed esi rs ty St ES 5 | Reservoirs or ‘ tanks z 19 
| Number and spacing of watering places SUI iia y ee en eee Sac ee ee es a 3 
Onmunenrangesi i lo Se ee ee sl) EXD oe icity oS ys ee ee oe 42 
Most feasible kinds of water devel- 
DIDI Se 10 
INTRODUCTION 
| The pioneer stockmen of the Southwest were not seriously handi- 
capped by the limited supply of watering places, since they located 
near the comparatively few permanent streams and springs. They 
left unused abundant forage on the unwatered areas beyond. As 
| time passed the herds increased and the unwatered ranges came 
| into use through development of a portion of the potential water 
supply, until to- day, broadly speaking, there are no extensive ranges 
entirely unused because of lack of water. There are, however, many 
large, inadequately watered areas on which additional development 
would mean better use of the forage resources and a more stable 
and successful range industry. 
The Southwest is an arid or semiarid region of small rainfall, 
high summer temperatures, low humidity, and high winds, resulting 
in relatively scanty natural surface supplies of water. Increased 
| demand for range in this region has made the relation between 
| watering facilities and proper range management more and more 
important: and adequacy of watering places, “types of water develop- 
ment, and spacing and feasible location of such developments on the 
1 Many stockmen of the Southwest, as well as members of the Forest Service, have gen- 
| erously supplied valuable information heretofore unpublished. The writer gratefully 
acknowledges his indebtedness for the use of this information. 
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