Saturday, August 2, 2025
69.7 F
Beckley
More

    National Park Service to unleash goats on invasive plants

    This fall, visitors to the historic ghost town of Thurmond, West Virginia, will encounter more than ghosts. They'll encounter goats.

    Advertisement

    The National Park Service at the New River Gorge National Park and Preserve is implement a plan to use goats to treat invasive plants among its historic buildings, according to ranger Dave Bieri.

    "Resource managers are experimenting with using an integrated pest management approach to treat non-native vegetation including Japanese knotweed, multiflora rose, and kudzu," Bieri explained.

    "These invasive plants tend to take over an area, forcing out native species that wildlife depend upon. At Thurmond, kudzu also puts historic structures at risk and contributes to a heavier fuel load, thereby increasing the risk of fire danger."

    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Advertisement
    Historic District at Thurmond, W.Va.

    In the past, Bieri said, resource-management staff has used various approaches to removing non-native species at Thurmond, including chemical treatment and mechanical removal, all with little success.

    "Goats have proved to be effective at killing plants because they eat all the foliage, which then prompts the plant to use up stored energy in roots for new growth, he said.

    "Goats will then continuing eating the plant, stressing and weakening it until it can no longer survive. Goats also eat flowers, which ensures that the plant will not go to seed and seeds are destroyed when passed through their digestive system."

    The goats will remain at Thurmond for approximately one month or until they've depleted the foliage.

    Advertisement

    The goat-management program is part of a three-year project, so they will return over the next two years.

    Coaling tower at Thurmond

    During this time, the park service will conduct research on the understory and shrub layer vegetation, pre-grazing and post-grazing, to see if there are significant effects on non-native invasive vegetation.

    The grazed areas will later be seeded with native grass and wildflowers at the end of the third year to promote the growth of native species.

    The goats will be on loan from Green Goats, a company that has provided goats to the National Park Service in the past at Gateway National Recreation Area, in New York, where they were used to remove plants that were damaging a Civil War gun battery.

    Advertisement

    These “weapons of grass destruction” are retired dairy and 4-H goats that now make their living eating unwanted vegetation, Bieri said.

    Visitors are welcome to come down to Thurmond over the next month to see the goats in action. While there, be sure to check out the historic Thurmond Depot and Commercial Row. For more information or updates, please visit the park website at .


    See also


    Sign up to receive a FREE copy of West Virginia Explorer Magazine in your email weekly. Sign me up!
    David Sibray
    David Sibray
    Historian, real estate agent, and proponent of inventive economic development in West Virginia, David Sibray is the founder and publisher of West Virginia Explorer Magazine. For more information, he may be reached at 304-575-7390.

    LEAVE A REPLY

    Please enter your comment!
    Please enter your name here

    Hot this week

    Unique northern panhandle of West Virginia created by historic dispute

    WEIRTON, W.Va — West Virginia's remarkable shape is partly...

    August in West Virginia: When mountain customs come home

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. — August in West Virginia is a...

    Wild and Wonderful: A journey through West Virginia’s most beautiful places

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. — There's a reason West Virginia is...

    Historic West Virginia heat waves and how the state can recover its coolness

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. — While known for its forests and...

    West Virginia to host first-ever Spartan Trifecta World Championship in the U.S.

    CHARLESTON, W.Va. — West Virginia will make history in...

    Topics

    Related Articles

    Popular Categories