Narrator:       This is Science Today. For decades, there's been concern about the impact of livestock grazing on public and private land. Mel George, a range specialist in the Department of Plant Sciences at the University of California, Davis has led a study looking into ways to reduce grazing impacts on wildlife and aquatic habitats.

George:           Using livestock distribution methods, we can improve the distribution of animals on the landscape and reduce overuse in any one area within a filed or pasture or an allotment and that's been a goal of range managers from the very beginning.

Narrator:       George says livestock distribution methods, such as water trough placement, supplemental feed and salt are still used to control grazing distribution, but now they have GPS and geographic information systems to help.

George:           Those two technologies allow us in a research mode to study how animals distribute themselves far better than we've ever been able to do it in the past. And that allows us to fine tune our practices, so that we do a better job of controlling livestock distribution.

Narrator:       For Science Today, I'm Larissa Branin.