Over time, the expansion in livestock population occasioned by the creation of stable political systems, urbanization and the accelerated migration of the nomadic Fulanis from the Futa Jallon, trade in animals and their products with both the coastal as well as Saharan peoples, must have added to the pressure on their environment. This can easily be seen from the fact that grazing animals is selective of the plants they eat, with palatable young foliage being preferred. As grazing pressure increased, more foliage is consumed, impairing its reproductive potential. This often results in the lost of vegetation and increases the extent of bare soil. Gregarious animals, such as sheep, graze in concentrated groups, thus increasing the potential to severely degrade small areas.
Domestic animals can cause severe degradation problems when they become feral.
The traditional methods of rotational pasture use based on the seasonality and productivity of individual pastures such as nomadism and transhumance, have been curtailed by settlements in this area. Under this situation, grazing is often restricted, leading to year round use of some pastures and soil compaction by the concentrations of livestock at water holes. This seems to make vegetation recolonization difficult and increases the risk of water and erosion. Thus heavily grazed lands around villages and along grazing routes were thus affected. Closely associated to overgrazing is the twin problem of bush burning and woodland destruction.