This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Two new research papers shed light on the growing practice of grazing sheep in fields with solar arrays. One demonstrates that, in the right numbers, sheep grazing increases populations of beneficial insects like bees and lady beetles compared to mowing around solar panels.
The other research describes a decision-making support tool to help farmers profitably grow their solar grazing herds. A team from the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences (CALS) found that when two sheep per hectare (2.47 acres) grazed around solar arrays, the abundance of wild bees, honey bees and lady beetles jumped by 38%, compared to a control plot that was mowed. The increase was driven primarily by an 83% increase in honey bees alone, according to the team's findings in "Low solar-grazing densities support beneficial insects in agrivoltaic systems," published Oct. 7 in Environmental Research Letters.
"Sheep grazing and beneficial insect habitat are two prominent conversation topics around solar development right now," said Leana Zoller, the paper's first author and a postdoctoral associate in natural resources in the Cornell CALS Ashley School of Global Development and the Environment. "But what's been missing is research that treats them as parts of the same system. When we talk about sustainable solar development, integrating these discussions into a single framework is really helpful to farmers and community decision makers." For three years, Zoller and a team of entomologists, ecologists and animal and plant scientists tested various stocking rates—how many sheep per hectare are allowed to graze a certain plot of land—using Cornell's teaching sheep grazing at the university-owned Cascadilla Community Solar Farm in Dryden, New York.
At four sheep per hectare (2.47 acres), they found beneficial insect abundance was similar to the mowed control site, while vegetation management effectiveness was greater than at two sheep per hectare (2.47 acres). At eight sheep per hectare (2.47 acres), vegetation management was maximized and sheep flock health remained high, but honey bee abundance dropped by 45%. "We zeroed in on stocking rates because that's a concrete number that sheep farmers understand and work with every day, and we want this research to be useful," said Steve Grodsky, the paper's senior author and assistant professor of natural resources in the Ashley School.
"With solar grazing, people, energy, agricultural animals, plants and insects are all part of this ecosystem. We're trying to understand the connections between those pieces so that when solar developers, municipalities looking at solar development or farmers are faced with a decision, they can have scientific information about potential trade-offs and synergies." Grodsky is also assistant unit leader of the U.S. Geological Survey New York Cooperative Fish and Wildlife Research Unit.
Additional co-authors are sheep farmer and solar grazing consultant Nikola Kochendoerfer, Ph.D. '20; Antonio DiTommaso, professor in the School of Integrative Plant Science; John Losey, professor of entomology; Scott McArt, Ph.D. '12, associate professor of entomology; Paige Muñiz, formerly a technician in McArt's lab; and Todd Ugine, Ph.D. '04, research associate in Losey's lab, all in CALS. Sarah Carson, director of Cornell's Campus Sustainability Office, was key in coordinating site access between researchers and the solar company that manages the Cascadilla solar farm. Another Cornell research team, from the Cornell SC Johnson College of Business, has developed a tool that helps farmers whose sheep graze in solar arrays to make better decisions about their operation.
Extract — continue reading at the source.
