Friday, June 30, 2017

Learn More About Invasive Species Control Using Goats

By Jessica Cox


There are various species that are known to grow uncontrollably and even thrive well under harsh weather condition, which makes them hard to deal with. Various state departments and research institutes have been leading the search for an effective and reliable remedy in their bid to control non-native species. Some institutes have suggested invasive species control using goats.

Invasive types can either be animals or plants whose origins are not of that particular area but result in extreme impact to the bioregion they encroach. They are threatening to biological diversity and cause loss of land in different land masses. For example, browsers can be really effective in suppressing non-native vegetation if they have covered a large area of land utilized by them.

Nevertheless, this might just be restricted to the utilization by the goats because some types are toxic. However, goats are famous for possessing an innate capacity to resist poisonous enzymes in deadly vegetation. Thus, they are able to survive in places where other animals are unable to. A whole flock of sheep can consume poisonous vegetation within an area because of this ability. Thus, they can be adopted as a control instrument.

Some animals eat seeds and later excrete the seeds as a whole, which allows them to regrow and spread. This is always a challenge in control of certain weeds and introduced species. But flocks are special in that once they consume such seeds; the seeds are completely destroyed by the digestive system of the goats and cannot regrow again. The most efficient way of controlling such forms of plants is to destroy the seeds, and that is why a flock is effective.

This method is very economical as the flock can be hired for those who do not rear large flocks. Those unable to buy them can hire them for graze purposes on their land and after eating unwanted species, they are returned to the owners. Renting them for control can be relatively cheap as the owner considers that the goats are well fed. In comparison to using chemical, it is usually an affordable and effective method.

As compared to other biological methods, they can be advantageous in that they convert brush and weeds into saleable product, and they graze concurrently with cattle. Goats are also more tolerant to secondary plants compounds. Though they do not graze uniformly they can reach taller branches by climbing or standing on hind leg. They also have narrow strong mouth that strip leaves and chew branches.

They are social animals and move in numbers. They stump on growing plant and this may be the end of the plants life . They are not known to cause any form of soil erosion but they increase soil fertility unlike large hooved animals that erode soil particles. They effectively remove unwanted plants and their chewing is much better. The method saves the environment as chemicals are not released into the atmosphere like in the use of herbicides.

Because of the different protocol signed by different leaders around the world concerning environmental management, it is prudent to adopt biological control techniques such as the use of goats to suppress the growth of infringing plants. This is due to the fact that it is cost effective contrary to mechanical techniques.




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