Manhiça is an area with high potential for both cattle and crops. Rainfall averages 850mm/year with a fair amount falling during the dry season due to its proximity to the Indian Ocean. Agricultural areas encompass privately owned alluvial plains with irrigated crops year-round, communal pastures on the transitional escarpment and communal pastures or annual cropping lands in the sandy uplands. Animal keeping continues to be the most important activity for 70% of the approximately 54 000 people living there (Cooptecnital, 1990).

Extensive animal grazing and irrigated agriculture predominate. Although there are 76 000 ha (Cooptecnital, 1990) of rangeland outside the valley, land conflicts exist and will worsen with time. The objectives of this study were to study herding strategy responses to pasture shortage as well as herbage mass and nutritive quality of the range utilized for grazing.