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UTILIZING GIS AND REMOTE SENSING TO
DETERMINE SHEEP GRAZING
PATTERNS FOR BEST PRACTICES IN
LAND MANAGEMENT PROTOCOLS
by
Rachel Rae Miller
A Thesis Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
MASTER OF SCIENCE
(GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY)
August 2012
Copyright 2012 Rachel Rae Miller
Object Description
| Title | Utilizing GIS and remote sensing to determine sheep grazing patterns for best practices in land management protocols |
| Author | Miller, Rachel Rae |
| Author email | rachelrae.miller@gmail.com;rachelrae.miller@gmail.com |
| Degree | Master of Science |
| Document type | Thesis |
| Degree program | Geographic Information Science and Technology |
| School | College of Letters, Arts And Sciences |
| Date defended/completed | 2012-05-29 |
| Date submitted | 2012-07-27 |
| Date approved | 2012-07-27 |
| Restricted until | 2012-07-27 |
| Date published | 2012-07-27 |
| Advisor (committee chair) | Paganelli, Flora |
| Advisor (committee member) |
Ruddell, Darren Longcore, Travis |
| Abstract | Sustainable ranching refers to the practice of evaluating livestock quantities that natural grasses and ecosystems are capable of supporting, with minimal long-term impacts on the environment. Defining optimal and sustainable stocking rates can be a complex problem for land managers striving to implement the practice of sustainable ranching of sheep. ❧ I used a combination of Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with Remote Sensing (RS) to analyze environmental variables and track movement patterns of sheep and tested it at the Lava Lake Livestock and Landscape Ranch. A GIS model utilizing remotely sensed imagery was built to identify areas capable for grazing by sheep across the study area. Tracking Analyst and Time Slider, which are GIS based time analysis tools, utilized point data collected from Global Positioning System (GPS) collars to visualize the rate at which sheep are traveling. ❧ Results show an estimated 85% of the study area is found capable for grazing with the primary eliminating factors being steeper terrain in the north and lack of water in the south. Results also outline two contrasting sheep patterns: a slower travel rate in autumn within the northern regions; a faster travel rate during spring in the more southern regions of the study area. An improvement in achieving even distribution of grazing, offering more resources such as water, and planning rest breaks of intensely used areas can be incorporated in future management plans. A continuation of the project would benefit from a closer look at vegetation specifically plant species type in the various terrains and a biomass study as well as factors affecting vegetation such as precipitation. |
| Keyword | GIS; remote sensing; land management protocols |
| Language | English |
| Part of collection | University of Southern California dissertations and theses |
| Publisher (of the original version) | University of Southern California |
| Place of publication (of the original version) | Los Angeles, California |
| Publisher (of the digital version) | University of Southern California. Libraries |
| Provenance | Electronically uploaded by the author |
| Type | texts |
| Legacy record ID | usctheses-m |
| Rights | Miller, Rachel Rae |
| Access conditions | The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the author, as the original true and official version of the work, but does not grant the reader permission to use the work if the desired use is covered by copyright. It is the author, as rights holder, who must provide use permission if such use is covered by copyright. The original signature page accompanying the original submission of the work to the USC Libraries is retained by the USC Libraries and a copy of it may be obtained by authorized requesters contacting the repository e-mail address given. |
| Repository name | University of Southern California Digital Library |
| Repository address | USC Digital Library, University of Southern California, University Park Campus MC 7002, 106 University Village, Los Angeles, California 90089-7002, USA |
| Repository email | cisadmin@usc.edu |
| Archival file | uscthesesreloadpub_Volume4/etd-MillerRach-1048.pdf |
Description
| Title | Page 1 |
| Full text | UTILIZING GIS AND REMOTE SENSING TO DETERMINE SHEEP GRAZING PATTERNS FOR BEST PRACTICES IN LAND MANAGEMENT PROTOCOLS by Rachel Rae Miller A Thesis Presented to the FACULTY OF THE USC GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree MASTER OF SCIENCE (GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY) August 2012 Copyright 2012 Rachel Rae Miller |
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