Goats Excel at Niche Weed Removal

Kudzu, which was brought to the U.S. in 1876 at the Philadelphia Centennial Exposition, is now embedded in a million acres of federal forest land and probably eight million acres of private land based on Forest Service estimates.  Kudzu-eating goats in Chattanooga have become the official city mascot since the Public Works Department decided last year to let them roam a city-owned section of a ridge that is overrun with the plant.  The goats and their situations have spawned a folk ballad and made headlines in the region.  

On Missionary Ridge, which bisects Chattanooga, the battle with kudzu is constant.  Of particular worry for the city is the kudzu which drapes over the mouth of the McCallie Tunnel, which cuts through the ridge.  A city forestry official persuaded city officials to hire a local farmer to graze his herd over the tunnel.  But when the herd first got there last fall, a few unexpected issues arose. 

First, some pranksters placed a “Goats Working” sign near the ridge.  Then, the guard donkeys proved ineffective when dogs attacked the goats and killed two of them.  The donkeys were replaced with llamas this year.  An Extension agent stated that safety concerns will not allow either human hand pulling or mechanical removal due to the steep slope.  But goats are quite capable and have reduced the biomass drastically on the ridge and in the surrounding area.  A four-day academy for goat herders was held by the city in hopes of stimulating a micro-industry of kudzu-grazing herds-for-hire.  (International Herald Tribune, 7/5/07).