2021 Spring Workshop Series

Cattle Behavior, Grazing Management and Technology

Thursday, April 8, 4-5:30 PM
Planned Grazing Using Mobile App Technology on the Central Coast
Aaron Lazanoff, Cal Poly

Zoom recording

Aaron Lazanoff manages approximately 250 cows at the Cal Poly Beef Unit. The virtual tour of the Cal Poly Escuela ranch showcases the grazing management and livestock software, PastureMaps, which allows the beef unit to monitor the length of the pasture rest period and to determine the location of cattle at Cal Poly in real-time. High intensity, short duration grazing periods has resulted in reduced feed costs and requires no supplemental feed resources besides protein/energy/mineral supplementation during the summer and fall.

Thursday, April 15, 4-5:30 PM
Cattle grazing behavior and monitoring techniques and the impact on rangeland resources and conservation
Megan Banwarth, Cal Poly

Zoom recording

Knowledge of cattle grazing movement, its effect on rangeland forages, and how to alter and manage grazing behavior is critical to maximize rangeland conservation. Technologies such as Global Positioning Systems (GPS) and accelerometers provide insightful data to better manage cattle and natural resources. This workshop will discuss various methods of altering grazing behavior and movement through applied practices.

Thursday, April 22, 4-5:30:
Burn Boss: Using Cattle Grazing and Prescribed Burns for Vegetation Management
Anthony Stornetta, ‘virtual ranch tour’

Part 1: Virtual Ranch Tour
Part 2: Zoom Recording

Anthony Stornetta is the Air and Wildland Battalion Chief for the Santa Barbara County Fire Department and President of the San Luis Obispo County Cattlemen’s Association. He is also a member of the California Cattlemen's Association Fire Subcommittee that focuses on education and outreach efforts regarding the use of grazing and prescribed burning for wildfire prevention and management. Stornetta's virtual tour will focus on the intersection between cattle grazing and vegetation management via prescribed burns. He will discuss his approach to grazing management as well as the Burn Boss course he helped develop in collaboration with the California Cattlemen's Association.

Thursday, April 29, 4-5:30 PM
Tracking cattle behavior: How does it inform management?
Mitch Stephenson , University of Nebraska- Lincoln

Zoom Recording

Dr. Mitchell B. Stephenson is an Assistant professor and Range Management Specialist with the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Panhandle Research and Extension Center located in Scottsbluff, NE. His research and extension programs are focused on better understanding the link between grazing management, plant communities, and soil health. Dr. Stephenson's workshop will cover the utilization of technology such as GPS collars and accelerometers to investigate cattle grazing behavior.