Synthetic Beef - Impact On Public Grazing?

[1_pointer]

I have seen an article arguing that bison actually over grazed themselves into extinction rather than the commonly accepted view that we shot them out of existence. You can find anything on the internet. But it all requires a suspension of disbelief.

If you read the old journals from trappers and the military there are references to sometimes having difficulty keeping there horses feed.

Exactly. Not sure they grazed themselves into "extinction", but I do believe many of the early journal recordings as to being accurate as the condition of the range and the cause of that condition. Reference to the amount of cactus and lack of grass in some areas near watercourses would indicate that bison did and have overgrazed areas.

 

[SAJ-99]

Exactly. Not sure they grazed themselves into "extinction", but I do believe many of the early journal recordings as to being accurate as the condition of the range and the cause of that condition. Reference to the amount of cactus and lack of grass in some areas near watercourses would indicate that bison did and have overgrazed areas.

Overgrazing is a concept contrived by humans, mostly cattle ranchers. It is based on our concept of what a "healthy" grassland looks like. I even find myself using the phrase from a purely selfish perspective. In my view, an area can be overgrazed by cattle or sheep in terms of its ability to attract elk or deer or whatever game I am seeking. If, as people moved West, a group got to an area after the bison moved out and found little grass for horses, then to them it was overgrazed. Was it overgrazed to the bison? I doubt it. They ate and they moved on. They had that ability at the time. There were an estimated 50m bison on the NA plains at the turn of the 19th century. They clearly did ok for themselves.

 

[1_pointer]

Overgrazing is a concept contrived by humans, mostly cattle ranchers. It is based on our concept of what a "healthy" grassland looks like. I even find myself using the phrase from a purely selfish perspective. In my view, an area can be overgrazed by cattle or sheep in terms of its ability to attract elk or deer or whatever game I am seeking. If, as people moved West, a group got to an area after the bison moved out and found little grass for horses, then to them it was overgrazed. Was it overgrazed to the bison? I doubt it. They ate and they moved on. They had that ability at the time. There were an estimated 50m bison on the NA plains at the turn of the 19th century. They clearly did ok for themselves.

Okay...

 

[MNElkNut]

Bill Gates think I should eat synthetic beef. I think Bill Gates should eat real beef. He has as much chance of me listening to him as I do for him listening to me.

 

[KB_]

This could be a plus for ranches. With all this synthetic beef flying around ill bet real beef will be EXPENSIVE!

 

[BWALKER77]

I read on the internet once the earth is flat, cigarettes don’t cause cancer, the moon landing wasn’t real, and Sandy Hook was fake.

All conspiracy theories aside I think it's a common thing to romanticize the past.

 

[Zach]

Some of the threads as of late could compel me to take up golf.

That bad eh....

 

[BWALKER77]

I have seen an article arguing that bison actually over grazed themselves into extinction rather than the commonly accepted view that we shot them out of existence. You can find anything on the internet. But it all requires a suspension of disbelief.

In all honesty the shooting them to extinction thing is theory as well. To be sure market gunning didnt help the species any, but the Indians once they got horses and guns really started to pound them. Then you have tick born disease carried up from Texas by the cattle drives.
Like most things there was probably multiple factors involved.

 

[SAJ-99]

In all honesty the shooting them to extinction thing is theory as well. To be sure market gunning didnt help the species any, but the Indians once they got horses and guns really started to pound them. Then you have tick born disease carried up from Texas by the cattle drives.
Like most things there was probably multiple factors involved.

Agree. There are always multiple factors for everything. But we have some records of hides and bones shipped from the plains to give a reasonable guess at the number. And the fact that elk and deer and almost every population of large game saw a steady decline to 1900 is a pretty compelling sign that the most common factor was human exploitation of the resource. It was the beginning of the conservation model we have today, so we can always change for the better.

 

[BWALKER77]

I would bet that historic elk and deer populations where a fraction of the buffalo population. That buffalo were nearly driven to extinction isnt remarkable. The speed in which it happened very much is.

 

[1_pointer]

I would bet that historic elk and deer populations where a fraction of the buffalo population. That buffalo were nearly driven to extinction isnt remarkable. The speed in which it happened very much is.

Agreed on the speed.

There's also more than a little bit of evidence that those huge numbers of bison on the Plains were an anomaly and a recent one...

 

[cacklercrazy]

If this took hold, it could drastically change public lands.

https://twitter.com/x/status/1361687125893255170

First off some place like here in California we need livestock in the hills to help with forest fires. Second off take domestic livestock out of diets the easier it gets for people to want to take all killing away including hunting.