rangelands
Open cattle country
Rangelands are large areas of open land, typically uncultivated, where livestock graze and wild animals roam.
They include grasslands, shrublands, savannas, and some deserts—terrain that supports grazing but is generally unsuitable for farming.
In the American West, rangelands are often managed for cattle ranching, sometimes on public land leased from the government.
The drought has affected rangelands across the region.
Rangeland management balances the needs of livestock, wildlife, and the land itself to prevent overgrazing and erosion.
Domesticated farm animals
- cattleDomesticated bovines kept commercially
- sheepWoolly farm animal
- goatsHorned farm ruminants
- forageSeek food actively
pasture · fodder · browse · overgrazing · rotational · carrying capacity · stocking · herbivores
Treeless herb-covered ecosystem
- steppeTreeless Eurasian grassland
- prairieOpen grassy flatland
- shrublandBush-dominated vegetation zone
- savannaTropical grassland, sparse trees
chaparral · veld · pampas · heathland · tundra · biome · ecotone · habitat
Distant or controller
outback · backcountry · hinterlands · isolation · vast · rugged · scenic · solitude
Managing animal groups
- nomadicWithout fixed residence
- shepherdsThose who tend flocks
- drovingLong-distance livestock walking
- husbandryFarm management practice
yurts · flocks · gauchos · pastoralist · seminomadic · migratory · traditional · communal
Animal life collectively
- speciesFinest taxonomic rank
- habitatOrganism's natural environment
- endemicNative to one area
- migrationMovement to new territory
predators · prey · ungulates · bison · antelope · kangaroo · wildebeest · zebra
Range of life forms
- endangeredAt risk of extinction
- invasiveEncroaching without welcome
- native speciesOrganisms originating in a region
- restorationReturning something to condition
preservation · stewardship · easement · monitoring · fire management · erosion · watershed · carbon sequestration
livestock
Domesticated farm animals
forage · pasture · fodder · browse · overgrazing · rotational · carrying capacity · stocking · herbivores · sustainable
grassland
Treeless herb-covered ecosystem
savanna · chaparral · veld · pampas · heathland · tundra · biome · ecotone · habitat · watershed
remote
Distant or controller
frontier · outback · backcountry · hinterlands · isolation · vast · rugged · scenic · solitude · unspoiled
herding
Managing animal groups
husbandry · yurts · flocks · gauchos · pastoralist · seminomadic · migratory · traditional · communal · customary
fauna
Animal life collectively
migration · predators · prey · ungulates · bison · antelope · kangaroo · wildebeest · zebra · elk
biodiversity
Range of life forms
- endangeredAt risk of extinction
- invasiveEncroaching without welcome
- native speciesOrganisms originating in a region
restoration · preservation · stewardship · easement · monitoring · fire management · erosion · watershed · carbon sequestration · sustainable
- farmlandfarms, farm, fields, field, barns
- Herdingherding, flock, flocks, herds, shepherd
- land typespark, croplands, reserve, forest, wetland
- nomadic lifenomads, yurt, wanderers, tent, Bedouins
- North DakotaBismarck, Fargo, Grand Forks, Badlands, Red River
- Pasturespaddocks, grasslands, meadows, hayfields, overgrazing
rangelandscropland
Land for growing produce
intensive agriculture · feedlots · farmland · arable land · plantations
rangelandsurban areas
Developed, populated regions
cities · metropolitan areas · industrial zones · suburban sprawl · downtown