---
OA_type: closed access
_id: '21036'
abstract:
- lang: eng
text: 'Forests under livestock grazing sustain important ecosystem services but
face potential trade-offs between production and ecological integrity. While the
effects of grazing on individual forest attributes are well documented, their
integrated consequences remain poorly understood, particularly in temperate forest
ecosystems. We evaluated the combined influence of livestock grazing intensity
and canopy cover on individual attributes and ecosystem multifunctionality in
native Nothofagus forests of Tierra del Fuego, Argentina. Across eight ranches
spanning two agroecological regions (Ecotone and Mountain Range), we quantified
forest regeneration, understorey richness and biomass, and soil properties, integrating
them into a multifunctionality index. Using generalized linear mixed models, we
found strong context-dependence: in the Mountain Range, higher grazing intensity
reduced seedling and sapling density, organic matter content, coarse woody debris,
and overall multifunctionality. In the Ecotone, these effects of livestock use
intensity were attenuated, and canopy cover diminished sapling density and multifunctionality,
but moderate cover enhanced understorey. Our results extend multifunctionality
research from grazed grasslands to grazed temperate forests and show that ecological
responses and trade-offs vary across landscape units. We conclude that the Mountain
Range is more vulnerable to grazing, requiring stricter management, whereas the
Ecotone retains greater capacity to sustain multifunctionality under controlled
livestock use intensity. These findings underscore the importance of region-specific
silvopastoral strategies that reconcile food production with forest conservation
in southern Patagonia and comparable temperate forest landscapes worldwide.'
acknowledgement: We would like to thank Guillermo Ortiz (CADIC-CONICET) for his invaluable
support in the field and lab work. We are extremely grateful to the ranchers for
kindly allowing us access to their fields. Funding for this work was provided by
the Argentine National Scientific and Technical Research Council (CONICET) and the
National Agency for Scientific Promotion through project PICT 2019–675. PR was also
granted the Mobility Scholarship Program 2025 between Andalusian and Ibero-American
Universities (AUIP). VCA is co-supported by the Community of Madrid under the 2024
call for the ‘César Nombela’ research talent attraction programme (2024-T1/ECO-31335).
article_number: '110219'
article_processing_charge: No
article_type: original
author:
- first_name: Paula
full_name: Rodríguez, Paula
last_name: Rodríguez
- first_name: Verónica
full_name: Cruz Alonso, Verónica
last_name: Cruz Alonso
- first_name: Silvina
full_name: Romano, Silvina
last_name: Romano
- first_name: Gimena
full_name: Bustamante, Gimena
last_name: Bustamante
- first_name: Rosina Matilde
full_name: Soler Schaller, Rosina Matilde
id: 9e668447-8c32-11ed-b0c7-8dc2d7b80803
last_name: Soler Schaller
citation:
ama: Rodríguez P, Cruz Alonso V, Romano S, Bustamante G, Soler Schaller RM. Context-dependent
effects of livestock grazing on forest attributes and ecosystem multifunctionality
in Nothofagus forests. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment. 2026;400.
doi:10.1016/j.agee.2026.110219
apa: Rodríguez, P., Cruz Alonso, V., Romano, S., Bustamante, G., & Soler Schaller,
R. M. (2026). Context-dependent effects of livestock grazing on forest attributes
and ecosystem multifunctionality in Nothofagus forests. Agriculture, Ecosystems
and Environment. Elsevier. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2026.110219
chicago: Rodríguez, Paula, Verónica Cruz Alonso, Silvina Romano, Gimena Bustamante,
and Rosina Matilde Soler Schaller. “Context-Dependent Effects of Livestock Grazing
on Forest Attributes and Ecosystem Multifunctionality in Nothofagus Forests.”
Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment. Elsevier, 2026. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2026.110219.
ieee: P. Rodríguez, V. Cruz Alonso, S. Romano, G. Bustamante, and R. M. Soler Schaller,
“Context-dependent effects of livestock grazing on forest attributes and ecosystem
multifunctionality in Nothofagus forests,” Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment,
vol. 400. Elsevier, 2026.
ista: Rodríguez P, Cruz Alonso V, Romano S, Bustamante G, Soler Schaller RM. 2026.
Context-dependent effects of livestock grazing on forest attributes and ecosystem
multifunctionality in Nothofagus forests. Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment.
400, 110219.
mla: Rodríguez, Paula, et al. “Context-Dependent Effects of Livestock Grazing on
Forest Attributes and Ecosystem Multifunctionality in Nothofagus Forests.” Agriculture,
Ecosystems and Environment, vol. 400, 110219, Elsevier, 2026, doi:10.1016/j.agee.2026.110219.
short: P. Rodríguez, V. Cruz Alonso, S. Romano, G. Bustamante, R.M. Soler Schaller,
Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment 400 (2026).
das_tickbox: '1'
dataavailabilitystatement: The authors do not have permission to share data.
date_created: 2026-01-25T23:01:38Z
date_published: 2026-04-15T00:00:00Z
date_updated: 2026-07-27T11:01:30Z
day: '15'
department:
- _id: NiBa
doi: 10.1016/j.agee.2026.110219
fulldoi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.agee.2026.110219
intvolume: ' 400'
language:
- iso: eng
month: '04'
oa_version: None
publication: Agriculture, Ecosystems and Environment
publication_identifier:
issn:
- 0167-8809
publication_status: published
publisher: Elsevier
quality_controlled: '1'
researchdata_availability: no
scopus_import: '1'
status: public
supplementarymaterial: yes
title: Context-dependent effects of livestock grazing on forest attributes and ecosystem
multifunctionality in Nothofagus forests
type: journal_article
user_id: 2DF688A6-F248-11E8-B48F-1D18A9856A87
volume: 400
year: '2026'
...