About the lab
We explore relationships among plants, soils, animals and their environment to support grassland conservation and sustainable use.
Overview
The Grassland Ecology Laboratory at Obihiro University of Agriculture and Veterinary Medicine studies grassland ecosystems in Japan and across Asia and Oceania. We investigate grassland productivity and environmental relationships using remote sensing to estimate forage production and composition, together with GPS, GIS and other tools to monitor grazing animals.
Grassland productivity and ecosystem conservation
Grasslands provide forage for livestock and support biodiversity, carbon cycling and many other ecosystem services. Desertification, land degradation and changes in management make it essential to consider productivity and conservation together.
Our work examines soil–plant–animal relationships and their environmental setting across scales, from individual plants and communities to landscapes. We study soil fertility and the spatial distribution of animal feeding and excretion, as well as vegetation. Fieldwork has taken us to Japan, China, Korea, Mongolia, New Zealand and Australia.
Observation and analysis grounded in fieldwork
Timely information on forage growth and animal behaviour can help farmers manage grasslands more precisely. We investigate how field observations and monitoring can support forage and livestock production while limiting environmental impacts.
We combine spatially explicit remote sensing with animal behaviour data collected using GPS and related instruments. These observations help us understand variation in forage resources and support precision grazing management.
