Mac Smithson, Masters Student

Mac Smithson joined the Center for Grazinglands and Ranch Management where he is pursuing a masters degree in Rangeland Ecology under Dr. Jeff Goodwin.

His research evaluates whether adaptive planned grazing with high stock density can improve soil health, vegetation structure, and ecosystem resilience compared to complete grazing exclusion in arid rangelands. Using intensive soil, vegetation, and wildlife monitoring methods, the study tests how regenerative grazing systems influence ecosystem processes such as water infiltration, nutrient cycling, and biodiversity to inform conservation strategies for federal agencies and ranchers in the Sonoran Desert region of Yuma, Arizona.

With 30 years of ranching experience in southwestern Oklahoma, northeast Texas and panhandle areas. Mac holds a bachelor degree in Agricultural Sciences with a minor in Agronomy from East Texas A&M. He is a licensed Auctioneer through the state of Texas with a concentration in livestock, land, & benefit auctions, and he has served 4 years in the Army.