100 Places To Remember: Bayan Ölgii, Mongolia
Geschreven op 7-5-2010 - Erik van Erne. Geplaatst in Natuur
Pastoral Life on the Mongolian Plains. The nomads of Mongolia have roamed the plains of Central Asia for the last 3,000 years. They lead a pastoral way of life, moving around in search of pasture for their livestock and sites for their gers (their word for a yurt, a round, moveable dwelling).
Today, half of the nearly three million inhabitants of Mongolia still live as herdsmen and share the lifestyle of their ancestors in the harsh environment of the steppes.
For Mongolian herdsmen and women, horses are indispensable. They provide transport and the mares supply milk, which is also fermented into the national alcoholic drink, airag.
The herdsmen raise cows, yaks, sheep and goats and, in the Gobi Desert to the south, they breed camels as well. The cattle supply them with essential meat, milk, yoghurt and cheese, the sheep with wool for clothing and felt for the gers.
Depending on the season, most Mongolian nomads move their campsite three times a year, but in the harsh south they can move up to 18 times a year.
During the next 80-90 years, rainfall patterns are expected to change and temperatures are projected to rise by 3.5-4°C. This will have a negative impact on the production of grass and herbaceous vegetation on the plains. The harsh semi-desert of the Gobi will move further north, and it will become more difficult for the Mongolians to find enough fodder for their livestock, threatening their traditional nomadic lifestyle and cutting production of meat, milk and wool.
