The Nature Conservancy - Gobbling Goats

Meet the goats in this video as they gobble their way through our invasive blackberries!

Help Protect Washington

There are many ways to give to The Nature Conservancy. We rely on your support to accomplish our ambitious conservation goals.

Goats gobble the bramble. (click to enlarge).

Go Deeper

The Nature Conservancy in Washington
Visit Washington's Port Susan Bay preserve and Skagit River and Delta landscape.

Invasive Species
Learn more about what the Conservancy is doing to combat the spread of invasive species.

Birding at Port Susan Bay
Migratory shorebirds have landed at Port Susan Bay. Learn how to see them.

Meet Conservancy Staff

Kat Morgan, stewardship manager for The Nature Conservancy's Port Susan Bay and Skagit Delta programs.

By Jocelyn Ellis

The Nature Conservancy is employing a unique workforce to help restore a cottonwood forest along the lower Skagit River. And when it comes to removing invasive blackberry plants on rough terrain, an industrious goat will outperform bulky mowing equipment any day.

The Conservancy is relying on a group of 30 goats—mothers and their kids—to gobble their way through five acres of blackberries, bramble and thorns in an effort to restore the landscape to its natural habitat.

Goats Eat Away Tough Invasives

When faced with an impenetrable eight-foot wall of invasive blackberries, Kat Morgan, The Nature Conservancy’s stewardship manager for the Port Susan Bay and Skagit Delta programs, wasn’t sure how to proceed.

The invasive Himalayan blackberries had overrun 10 of the forest’s 40 acres, a piece of land the Conservancy purchased in 2006 with help from the Salmon Funding Recovery Board.

The Conservancy decided to contact Akyla Farms, a local farm with goats up to the challenge. These productive goats have removed all the leaves and most of the shoots of the invading blackberries. They will scour the land for five weeks and are protected by one guard llama, named Fiber Festival, who keeps coyotes and other predators at bay with his intimidating stature and sharp hooves.

A "Green" Solution to the Problem

Using goats to remove weeds is becoming an increasingly popular technique in the Northwest. Goats are highly skilled in their craft:

they can quickly chomp through invasive leafy plants like blackberries;
their mouths are particularly hard and aren’t bothered by prickly thorns; and
their four-chambered stomachs digest seeds well enough to prevent future growth.

Goats are also prized for their agility; their seemingly stocky bodies can gracefully jump to reach the loftiest of leaves and climb to pull down high-reaching bramble. They can squiggle into small areas that mowers and trucks can’t reach and they don’t require the same kinds of permits as large construction vehicles.

The method is also becoming popular with “green” developers. Goats don’t require gasoline, are chemical-free, and because they’re eating the product, there’s minimal clean-up involved.

What Happens Next?

Once the goats successfully clear the area, Morgan will lead a team of volunteers to restore the land to its natural habitat. This fall, the blackberries will be replaced with 3-year-old spruce and western red cedar trees.

The spruce and cedar will mature beneath the canopy of cottonwood trees, and will eventually replace them as the dominant species. Cottonwood trees will flourish along the river’s edge, where they naturally thrive. Over the next few years, balance between cottonwood and conifer trees will be restored. Native shrubs will re-seed and create natural ground cover. The new trees and brush will provide shade and safe cover for migrating songbirds, mammals passing through, and fish in the nearby river.

Jocelyn Ellis is a marketing specialist for The Nature Conservancy.