Who would have thought that rare and delicate creatures such as the fairy shrimp and the tiger salamander could live in harmony with lumbering herds of cattle? A study recently released by Nature Conservancy ecologist Jaymee Marty indicates that these critters, who live in seasonal rainwater ponds called vernal pools, may actually benefit from the presence of grazing cattle.

	Vernal pool on Howard Ranch  © Mike Eaton 2003

Marty recently completed her research in and around Howard Ranch, a working cattle ranch within the Cosumnes River Preserve. The Nature Conservancy, along with seven governmental and non-profit partners, manages the 40,000-acre Cosumnes River Preserve. Howard Ranch, along with several other working farms, is part of the Cosumnes River Preserve and is one example of the Conservancy’s ongoing effort to demonstrate compatibility between agriculture and the natural environment.

Thousands of grazing animals such as deer and tule elk were once part of the natural systems in the Central Valley where cattle now roam. Marty's two-year study suggests that grazing, as a natural process, can actually be necessary for the survival of vernal pools, as well as the flora and fauna that depend on them.