Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 94
Madagascar's central plain has been repeatedly burned to provide fresh graz-
ing for zebu, making it one of the most abused regions of the planet.
tamed, goats and sheep were being domesticated from wild populations in
central Asia, and perhaps the Fertile Crescent of the Middle East.
18
Of the two, goats have done the most damage, because they pull up entire
plants and eat their roots. Overgrazing by goats has contributed to the dev-
astation of ecosystems in the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and Africa.
The origin of goats is a little unclear. Several wild species contributed to
their ancestry. Cashmere goats, which are adding to the prosperity of Mon-
golian nomads at the same time as they severely overgraze the grasslands of
Inner Mongolia, have been domesticated from a distinct lineage of wild goat.
Whether that lineage was actually a dif erent wild goat species, or whether
