Looking at full ecosystems over time has led to increased understanding of the mutually beneficial relationships between plants, land, air, water and animals. We now know how to build and manage systems that allow animals to impart their benefits on the ecosystems they inhabit. On a larger scale, introducing grass-ruminants in a Silvopasture or Agroforestry system. But also in Orchards or rotational grazing of pastures can increase fertility, biodiversity, weed control, improve water retention in soils, and assist in pest management. On a smaller scale, poultry is a popular option. Adding a small flock of hens to a backyard, homestead or small farm brings myriad benefits, to build healthy soils in the vegetable beds and to scratch and eat weed seeds and insect larvae, breaking pest cycles and adding their high nitrogen manure to soils with an extra yield of meat or eggs.  Fibre-bearing sheep, alpaca and llamas can provide similar benefits. Ducks can manage the floors of food forests by naturally processing the groundcover by mowing them and converting them to nutrients and thus speeding up the mineral cycle. They eat fallen fruit, pest eggs and larvae and control weeds. Also indispensable in the kitchen garden as they do not scratch and their ability to find and consume insects, especially snails and slugs is unparalleled. 

The natural tendency of pigs to dig is used as an excellent land prep tool but you can also run them on pasture and groundcovers to graze them down, recycle nutrients and even food forest floor management. The pigs recycle a wide range of food and crop waste from the systems into dung and during fruit season run them under the food forests to consume fallen fruit and prevent fruit fly. 

Developping your ability to integrate animals, from livestock to insects, into a complete regenerative design in ways that best utilise animal resources, and the yields from these properly managed animal systems will be countless – not to mention the animals themselves!