It can be said that transhumant cattle ranching is described as grazing that goes through seasons, which is based on taking cattle from winter fields to summer fields or vice versa and which is in constant movement. In other words, transhumance refers to a type of grazing that is carried out in constant movement, which also adapts to territories or spaces of changing productivity. The exercise of transhumance is based mainly on two natural phenomena that are related to one another: animal migration and the differences in primary production caused by the seasons.
The transhumant cattle ranching manages to distinguish itself from the practice of nomadism given that it can sustain fixed seasonal settlements together with a stable main nucleus, from which the population that performs this practice generally derives. According to certain studies, it is stated that between the transhumant cattle ranching and the nomadic cattle ranching they occupy or practice it around 100 to 200 million people in the world; the territories used for this system are equivalent to around 30 million km², or up to twice the land that is lent to agriculture.
This livestock system provides great benefits for the ecosystem but also for society; Mainly because the passage of cattle increases the fertility of soils that are in threat of desertification, incorporating manure and other plant remains in their path. On the other hand, transhumant livestock is the most efficient in terms of taking advantage of grazing surfaces, using resources that do not compete with human food; phenomenon that enables the herd to be almost self-sufficient. Here the animals feed on a matter that could be defined as fuel that helps effectively to fight fires.
