KAUKAUNA — The popular invasive plant eating goats will return to the 1000 Islands Nature Center this summer, and signups for volunteers are under way.
The program goes back to2018 when 1000 Island began bringing in goats from Mulberry Lane Farm, to help manage invasive and other unwanted plants from the Conservancy Zone.
The goats are encouraged to browse on plants each day for 2 weeks. This technique, done multiple times over the course of a few years will stress out the plants and stunt their growth giving native vegetation a chance to recover and grow.
For 2022, 1000 Islands is moving their browsing areas to start managing new sections of the property, hoping to spread the positive impact that the project has had.
The Spring browsing session begins on Monday, June 6, 2022 and will run through June 17. The goats are moved into the browsing enclosures daily from 8 a.m. until 5 p.m., depending on the weather.
Visitors are welcomed to come and watch.
What to be more involved? You can support the Goat Project in a couple of ways:
- Volunteer to be a Goat Watcher. Goat watchers help watch the goats in the browsing enclosure, answering visitor questions, and bending branches for the goats. More information and a chance to sign up can be found here.
- Buy Goat Team apparel. Purchasing “Kaukauna Goats” apparel helps raise funds for conservation projects like the goats. Online orders need to be placed by May 11th and will be available for pickup while the goats are on-site. There will be a limited supply of t-shirts available to purchase in person at the nature center as well, but be sure to order through the online store for the full variety and lower costs. Order your Goat Team apparel here.
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