Victoria River District
Cattle grazing in the Victoria River District has traditionally
needed little input from producers as stations covered vast tracts
of land. In the past livestock were watered via natural sources
such as rivers and fencing was limited. Under this management
regime, significant degradation occurred locally as very large
herds of uncontrolled cattle built up around water holes. Large
numbers of feral horses and donkeys contributed greatly to grazing
pressure. The 1960s saw the beginning of property and breeding
stock improvements in the region, as a result of improved transport
facilities and the opening up of new markets. Today the VRD is seen
as a very successful grazing area in which negative impacts have
been kept to a minimum through maintaining conservative stocking
rates.
Sturt Plateau
The plateau is at present characterised by ongoing subdivision
of large extensive leases (around 2000 square kilometres) to
smaller ones (around 600 square kilometres). The majority of the
original properties have now been subdivided to some extent. Many
of these newer properties are in the earlier stages of development,
and stock numbers are limited by lack of infrastructure including
fences and bores. However, as development proceeds, herd sizes are
increasing.
While the majority of enterprises run cattle on native pastures,
there is a trend toward developing more intensive grazing systems
based on improved pastures and other crops. The area has seen some
clearing to this end, although limited roads have restricted
horticultural options mainly to grain and hay cropping. The
provision of land for agistment, and short-term 'depoting' of live
export cattle on route to Darwin, represent additional income
sources for plateau producers.
Brucellosis and Tuberculosis Eradication campaign
The greatest shift to property management came via the improved
infrastructure that was necessary to comply with the Brucellosis
and Tuberculosis Eradication campaign (BTEC) in the late 1970s and
1980s. Funding was provided to develop additional fencing and
watering points, needed for the mustering and testing requirements
of the campaign. Bores were financed away from river systems,
shifting some of the grazing pressure from riparian environments,
wild cattle numbers were reduced and herd management was improved
by encouraging age segregation. (Condon 1988: 262)
The efficiency of mustering, which for a long time had been in
the form of wild cattle 'harvesting', was greatly improved by the
introduction of helicopters. This has meant that paddocks can now
be mustered twice yearly, and with a far greater effectiveness than
in the past.
Property dynamics
Properties in the VRD are large, and stocking rates are fairly
low, on average at around 8 head per square kilometre. At present
property sizes range from one to 12,000 square kilometres, although
the average size is 4000 square kilometres. There is a trend in
this region, as in most of northern Australia toward company
ownership, and the majority in the VRD are now corporately owned.
Owner/ manager run enterprises are still significant however. On
average, properties change hands around every 10 years, which is
very high, and manager changes are also frequent. There are around
30 operating properties in the VRD at present. This number has
fallen over recent years, and significant tracts of land are now
under Aboriginal control or are conservation reserves.
Virtually all grazing in the VRD takes place on native pastures.
Improved pastures were experimented with in the past, but graziers'
resources would seem better served by improving management of
native grasses.
Markets
Under BTEC, the VRD essentially switched its herd make-up from
largely Shorthorn dominated in the mid-70s to the Brahman-based
herd of today. Thus the region has been able to benefit greatly
from the growing live export trade. Breeding to produce stores for
this market has become the major concern of pastoralists in the
region, and there is now very little turn-off of stores to domestic
markets from the VRD. An alternative to the live cattle market is
provided by the two nearby abattoirs in Katherine and
Batchelor.
Future outlook
Overall the outlook for the pastoral industry in the VRD is very
good, both economically and on a land management front. The live
export market is predicted to continue to grow as South East Asian
economies recover from the market collapse of 1997.
For producers to take advantage of these markets, the land
condition needs to be well managed. At present in the VRD, the
efficiency and sustainability of land-management practices is the
focus of much research, and producers seem open to change. Various
landcare and best best practice groups have been formed, and in
1996 the Victoria River District Conservation Association (VRDCA)
had 30 member properties, which accounted for most of the land in
the area. Demonstration sites and courses which assist producers
improve land management practices and returns are in demand.
The Tropical Savannas CRC initiated a management study in the
region in 1996. The VRD Management Study provides a cohesive way to
bring together a number of separate research projects in this
district. See the links at the end of the page to read about the
VRD Management Study.
Land systems
The Victoria River District is a mixture of grassy plains,
rolling savannas and rocky spinifex country. Overall woodlands with
grassy understoreys typify the vegetation over most the region,
although tree density decreases significantly in the south. Around
30 per cent of the region may be considered 'unproductive country',
because of low carrying capacity and inadequate stock control,
although as the VRD develops this figure will continue to fall.
The region is characterised by large areas of hummock grasslands
associated with sand and skeletal soils. There are around sixteen
local pasture units making up the eight main pasture land
communities, as described in Tothill, J. C. & Gillies, C.
(1992), which are interspersed throughout the region.
The hummock grasslands are widespread throughout the central
zone of the region. Here local pasture units include:
- curly spinifex (Plectrachne pungens)
- soft spinifex (Triodia pungens )
In the north-east and north-west large areas of monsoon annual
tallgrass pastures, featuring annual sorghums (Sorghum intrans,
S. stipoideum ), occur.
Patches of tropical-subtropical perennial tallgrass pastures of
ribbongrass (Chrysopogon spp.) are scattered throughout the
entire region. Aristida-Bothriochloa pastures, in eucalypt
and open woodlands, are mainly found in the south-eastern corner of
the region south of Daly Waters. The local pasture unit of this
community is Aristidapruinosa-three awn. Mitchell
grass (Astrebla spp.) tussock grasslands occur on clay soils
found around the south of the region along the Buchanan
Highway.
Bluegrass (Dicanthiumfecundum) also grow on clay
soils but are found in the northern inland sectors and have a
sinuous distribution associated with watercourses. North of the
Mitchell grass tussock grasslands grow numerous patches of annual
shortgrass forb pastures, without top feed (palatable shrubs and
trees). They occur in low open woodland on calcareous soils in the
drier sections of the region. Occurring along the coast are pockets
of perennial shortgrass pasture lands of saltwater couch
(Sporobolus spp.). These areas are not associated with top
feed.
In good years the spaces between the Mitchell grass tussocks is
taken up by annuals, especially flinders grass (Iseilema
spp.).
Rainfall and pasture
The region has a warm dry monsoonal climate with rainfall
concentrated between November and March. Rainfall can be highly
variable, and decreases from around 1000 mm in the north to less
than 400 mm in the south. Fluctuations in rainfall can have a
significant effect on structure and composition of the Mitchell and
mixed grassland communities especially in the south of the region.
This part of the VRD also receives occasional falls of winter
rain.
The period of useful pasture growth (growing season) can range
from only 9 weeks in the south to 5 months in the north. However
the nutritive value of grasses in the north, such as sorghum
species, declines rapidly with maturity. The nutritional worth of
grasses tends to improve as one heads south.
