Island Wants to Gather Wild Goats. Catching Them Will Be Hard.
On Mediterranean island Alicudi, ruminants outnumber humans 6 to 1 (or more). Officials plan to capture and rehome the goats.
A crack team of wildlife experts will swarm the volcanic cliffs and natural caves of a small Mediterranean island in June to capture wild goats.
It is the first step in removing hundreds of feral goats from the Aeolian island of Alicudi, north of Sicily, to allow the animals to be adopted elsewhere.
The regional government official overseeing the project says the goats are fast and can leap 10 feet. He said they can weigh 175 pounds—“think of what that means.”
Alicudi, Sicily's least inhabited and farthest Aeolian island, is two square miles. Donkeys carry supplies up unpaved streets, and port distances are measured in stairsteps without cars.
The goats arrived 35 years ago when an islander sought mainland food supplements. The few goats got loose and foraged in the dormant volcano's rugged terrain.
After years of confidence, the goats moved from the island's crest into inhabited areas to find food, “even people's homes.”
Since the regional government and local administration announced the adopt-a-goat program this year, more goats were requested than there were available.
Local prosecutors and a regional court were notified by an animal rights group that they could have found less cruel solutions to the giveaway than removing the goats from their home.
The goats will be taken to an Italian sanctuary for rescued animals. "They should die peacefully.
Also See
The Power Of Ladybugs – How To Attract Ladybugs To Your Plants!