They’re baaack! Goats gnaw their way through Nose Hill Park

Hundreds of goats are back at Nose Hill Park, helping manage invasive plants, reduce wildfire risk and support grassland health.

Hundreds of four-legged environmental workers have returned to Nose Hill Park, bringing healthy appetites, specialized training and an extremely high cute factor.

The City of Calgary is using goats to remove invasive plants, reduce excess vegetation and improve the long-term health of the park’s native grasslands.

Although the program is officially called targeted grazing, goats are more accurately described as browsers; grazing animals generally favour grass, while browsing animals prefer leaves, weeds, shrubs and other woody plants.

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That distinction makes goats particularly well suited to the job.

Jeanette Hall, owner and operator of BAHH’D Plant Management and Reclamation, says goats can eat plants that other livestock may avoid.

“What separates them from other livestock like sheep and cattle is that they have enzymes that help break down a lot of the toxins in a lot of the weeds that they’re eating, and so that’s why a lot of the weeds that other livestock won’t eat is are actually palatable to the goats.”

The herd is expected to remain in the park until July 30, browsing within priority areas selected with the help of environmental consultants.

Hall says the goats may not cover as much ground as they have in previous years.

“I have about 800 goats up there, and this year it’ll be a little tough because we’re earlier, so we have more biomass, we have more vegetation that’s thriving and at a healthy place,” Hall said.

“Versus when we come later in the fall, a lot of stuff has already gone dormant, so we’re here earlier, so it might be a little bit smaller, but we’re still in the same area.”

The work is intended to reduce invasive weeds, woody plants and dead vegetation that can crowd out native species or contribute to the risk of grass fires.

Andrew Phelps, a parks ecologist with the City of Calgary, says the goats typically remove between 40 and 50 per cent of the vegetation in the areas where they are placed.

“That opens up new real estate for our native species to establish, which is great,” Phelps said. “We also see a reduction in weedy and woody species as well.”

The goats are also filling a role once played by large animals that historically roamed the area.

“We don’t have our historic grazers here, such as bison and elk, and we do have some white-tailed deer, but the populations just aren’t high enough to make a significant difference to really renew those grasslands,” Phelps said. “So we’re bringing in goats as analogs for those historic grazers.”

Phelps said reducing the buildup of vegetation also reduces the amount of material available to feed a wildfire.

“By bringing these goats back as analogs for those historic grazers, we’re effectively reducing the biomass and the wildfire fuel,” he said. “And so, we’re reducing the risk on this side of the hill.”

The benefits do not end when the vegetation is swallowed.

What goes into one end of a goat as food comes out the other as fertilizer.

The goats return nutrients to the soil through their droppings, while their hooves disturb and loosen the ground, helping seeds germinate.

“There’s beautiful poop. It’s wonderful,” Hall said. “The poop is so great that it doesn’t redistribute the seeds, so they actually destroy the seeds, and it doesn’t attract flies.”

Hall says the droppings are similar to those left by deer, making them easy to sweep off pathways and manage.

“But it’s also one of the benefits that we’re having in building soil health,” she said.

The herd has been together for almost 30 years and has been trained through repeated exposure to eat a wide range of weeds.

Hall jokingly calls the hardy, mixed-breed animals “the Alberta goat.”

The goats are watched around the clock by shepherds and are accompanied by herding and livestock guardian dogs.

Temporary fencing is used to keep the herd contained and protect it from predators.

Visitors may encounter pathway closures or restricted sections while the animals are working.

The public is asked to give the goats, dogs and shepherd space.

The goats also provide the city with an opportunity to get people interested in its conservation work.

“Goats bring in a lot of public attention,” Phelps said. “There’s a cuteness factor.”

For Hall, spending several weeks camping on Nose Hill and supervising hundreds of goats is not a hardship.

“It’s freedom. It’s just paradise,” she said. “This is incredible. I love my life.”