SPATIAL PATTERN OF A SMALL CATTLE HERD IN AN EXPERIMENTAL STRIP-WISE GRAZED PASTURE

Spatial patterns formed by a small cattle herd grazing in a strip-wise pasture, which was designed to observe the cattle behavior under simp le experimental conditions, were analyzed. The following problems were dealt with in this study: (1) What is the spatial pattern of a herd o n the pasture, and (2) What is the spatial pattern of individuals with in the herd. To the first question, the answer was that the cattle tro op did not deploy in the whole area of the pasture, but formed a crowd on part of the pasture and wandered about although the troop length o f cattle on the pasture fluctuated from time to time. To the second qu estion the following two answers were given based on the analyses: (1) individuals formed a random or a slightly regular pattern within the herd when the individuals dispersed in a large area, and (2) the spati al pattern changed between aggregated, random and regular patterns wit hin the herd when the individuals formed a crowd in a small area. Spat ial pattern of individuals within the herd in the feeding phase appear ed to be random, while that in the resting phase appeared to be determ ined by chance.