Investigating Outdate Spring Migration among Nomads of Fars Province.

Nomad's livelihood is based on continuous migration between summer and winter pastures to obtain forage for their animals and access to contented weather. This living way has long history in Iran which formed in accord with climate. In recent century, many changes have been made in traditional living way of nomads. Therefore, nomads have no more their role and function as in the past. One of changes in nomads' living way is about migration time which usually leads to early entering in rangelands. This has deteriorative effect on rangelands. Present article delivers results of a survey research on factors affecting early migration of nomads and early entering of their animals in summer pastures of Fars province. Findings indicated that early entering in summer pastures are a common phenomenon among nomads. The mean of days which nomads enter early in summer pasture is 13 days. The means are 17.5, 2.1 and 41.4 days for nomads of Qhashqay clan, Khamseh clan and Mamasani clan respectively. Most nomads have migrated their animals from winter pasture to summer pastures by walk. This way of migration, in comparison to migration by machine, has resulted in decreasing the days which nomads enter early in summer pasture. The results also indicated that nomads have low sense of security in migration time. From point of their view, the mediterranean steppe grass (Stipa capensis) and drought could increase the days of entering early in summer pasture for 18 and 26 days respectively. Nomads also believed that fresh water and animal forage deficiencies are important determinant factors in early migration of nomads. Preservation of tribal pathways, hiring grazing hinderer for summer pasture, increasing nomads' migration security, create a temporary lodge places throughout migration path to provide support services for livestock, take the necessary measures to control mediterranean steppe grass in winter rangelands, supplying water to the nomads with appropriate methods, providing part of the animal forage requirements in drought years are the recommendations of this research to control nomads outdate spring migration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]