Arlo |
The Roan Mountain Highlands are a special place. Hiking the Appalachian Trail through Catawba Rhododendron in June, eating fresh blueberries along the way in August, stunning views from the balds, beautiful wildflowers, and for four months out of every year there are the Angora Goats.
I began an on-going series of images in 2008 that feature the Angora Goats. The goats are on the Highlands as part of the Baa-tany Goat Project and arrive in late June and depart in September. The goats browse at elevations of 5800-6100 feet along a one-mile corridor of the Appalachian Trail between the Jane and Grassy Balds.
Facing the Dawn |
The bald's ecosystems have declined in quality and are being overrun by "woody" plants. The project's purpose is to restore the vegetation on the Grassy Bald corridors using the goats as an experimental vegetation management tool. Their main target is the Canadian Blackberry.
Roan's Grassy Balds are home to many rare and endemic plant species including the Gray's Lilly and the balds are believed to pre-date European settlement.
The project is making a positive impact and browsing rotation and vegetation sampling protocols are being developed that can hopefully be applied elsewhere.
Gray's Lilly |
While the goats browse they are protected within a 1+ acre paddock by a solar-powered electric fence and two Great Pyrenees dogs. Within 7-10 days they achieve the desired impact and a new paddock is set up.
Dylan |
Click on this link to find out more about The Baa-tany Goat volunteer-based project.
