Socio-geographical history of the bovine cattle in the reserve "La Sepultura", Chiapas (Mexico)

Abstract

In Chiapas, Mexico, the management of Natural Protected Areas is closely related to the expansion of livestock, agriculture, illegal clearing, and agrarian conflicts. In this sense, this article aims to collect, analyze, systematize, and issue both a critique and a reflection on the current territorial distribution of livestock in two peasant communities located within La Sepultura Reserve in Chiapas. With information from the Community Forestry Development Program, maps of deforested areas, and participatory action-research (PLAR), the territories of Tres Picos and California communities within La Sepultura Reserve were planned. During the 70s there was a proper management of the territory; however, between 1988 and 1993 there was a significant reduction in the pine and oak forests. Nowadays, livestock moves from the traditional to the extensive system, with a trend to an agroforestry management.