An exclosure, in an area being used extensively for grazing, is a limited area from which unwanted

browsing Browsing is a kind of orienting strategy. It is supposed to identify something of relevance for the browsing organism. When used about human beings it is a metaphor taken from the animal kingdom. It is used, for example, about people browsing o ...

animals, such as domestic

cattle Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult mal ...

or wildlife such as

deer Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...

, are excluded by fencing or other means.

Environmental protection

Most commonly, exclosures are areas that are set aside for regreening. Wood harvesting and livestock range are not allowed there.

Effects on environment

The establishment of an exclosure has positive effects on: *

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

water infiltration Infiltration is the process by which water on the ground surface enters the soil. It is commonly used in both hydrology and soil sciences. The infiltration capacity is defined as the maximum rate of infiltration. It is most often measured in meter ...

* protection from flooding *

sediment Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sand an ...

deposition *

carbon sequestration Carbon sequestration is the process of storing carbon in a carbon pool. Carbon dioxide () is naturally captured from the atmosphere through biological, chemical, and physical processes. These changes can be accelerated through changes in land ...

Economic benefits

In developing countries, people commonly have economic benefits from these exclosures through grass harvesting, beekeeping and other

non-timber forest product Non-timber forest products (NTFPs) are useful foods, substances, materials and/or commodities obtained from forests other than timber. Harvest ranges from wild collection to farming. They typically include game animals, fur-bearers, nuts, seed ...

s. The local inhabitants also consider it as “land set aside for future generations”.

Carbon credits

Exclosures have as an additional benefit that the surrounding communities may receive

carbon credit A carbon credit is a generic term for any tradable certificate or permit representing the right to emit a set amount of carbon dioxide or the equivalent amount of a different greenhouse gas (tCO2e). Carbon credits and carbon markets are a compo ...

s for the sequestered CO₂, as part of a

carbon offset A carbon offset is a reduction or removal of emissions of carbon dioxide or other greenhouse gases made in order to compensate for emissions made elsewhere. Offsets are measured in tonnes of carbon dioxide-equivalent (CO2e). One ton of carbon ...

programme.EthioTrees on Plan Vivo website
/ref> In the

Tigray Region The Tigray Region, officially the Tigray National Regional State, is the northernmost regional state in Ethiopia. The Tigray Region is the homeland of the Tigrayan, Irob, and Kunama people. Its capital and largest city is Mekelle. Tigray is ...

, in

Ethiopia Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...

, several exclosures are managed by the

EthioTrees The EthioTrees Ecosystem Restoration Association, in short EthioTrees, established in 2016, is a project for environmental rehabilitation and woodland restoration in Dogu’a Tembien (Ethiopia). Context Since many years, there has been severe ...

project. The revenues are then reinvested in the villages, according to the priorities of the communities;EthioTrees on Davines website
/ref> it may be for an additional class in the village school, a water pond, conservation in the exclosures, or a store for

incense Incense is aromatic biotic material that releases fragrant smoke when burnt. The term is used for either the material or the aroma. Incense is used for aesthetic reasons, religious worship, aromatherapy, meditation, and ceremony. It may also be ...

Range management

Exclosures are sometimes constructed by government agencies that manage livestock use on public lands—a practice in which private owners of cattle pay, though often only a nominal sum, for the right to graze their livestock on the public lands. Exclusion plot on Island Saddle

Experimental sites

One purpose of the exclosure is to determine how the area would develop (in

, vegetation height,

ecological Ecology () is the study of the relationships between living organisms, including humans, and their physical environment. Ecology considers organisms at the individual, population, community, ecosystem, and biosphere level. Ecology overlaps wi ...

characteristics, etc.) if grazing were not conducted.

Protection of humans

Another purpose is to demarcate an area safe for humans by excluding potentially deadly animals. For example, a beach may have a shark net around it to prevent sharks from attacking human swimmers. Another example is at wild animal preserves which provide fenced in areas for humans to safely watch lions, tigers, or other large predators.

References

External links

*{{cite journal , last1=Aerts , first1=R. , last2=Nyssen , first2=J. , last3=Haile , first3=M. , title=On the difference between 'exclosures' and 'enclosures' in ecology and the environment , journal=Journal of Arid Environments , date=1 August 2009 , volume=73 , issue=8 , pages=762–763 , doi=10.1016/j.jaridenv.2009.01.006 , bibcode=2009JArEn..73..762A , url=https://lirias.kuleuven.be/handle/123456789/239842
The Kenya Long-term Exclosure Experiment
- An exclosure experiment in Africa with both livestock and wildlife.

- photos of a

Bureau of Land Management The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is an agency within the United States Department of the Interior responsible for administering federal lands. Headquartered in Washington DC, and with oversight over , it governs one eighth of the country's la ...

exclosure in the Pahsimeroi River Valley of

Idaho Idaho ( ) is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. To the north, it shares a small portion of the Canada–United States border with the province of British Columbia. It borders the states of Montana and Wyom ...

Land management Environmental conservation