KCET: In the wake of the recent controversy in Nevada over rancher Cliven Bundy's illegal grazing of at least 900 cattle on a fragile swath of the Mojave desert, supporters of the rancher have pointed to claims that stocking cattle on desert lands can actually improve the desert and help mitigate the effects of global warming.
The hypothesis that cattle can improve desert lands, referred to by its supporters as "Holistic Management," has long been criticized by wildlife biologists, along with its chief...