Management of Introduced Mountain Goats

National Park Service directives regarding exotic species instruct superintendents to evaluate the species’ current or potential impacts on park resources, develop and implement management plans, and invite public review and comment. We plan to initiate a three-year project in 2008 that will meet these directives by 1) appraising the current state of knowledge about mountain goats and evaluating their potential effects to native bighorn sheep, rare plants, and alpine communities; 2) identifying a range of suitable alternatives for management of mountain goats and alpine communities; and 3) producing a suite of recommendations for adaptively managing mountain goats that could be implemented by the park and its partners to reduce the risk of adverse effects from goats to native species and alpine communities. Studies of alpine vegetation in the northeast portion of the park during 2002 and 2003 suggest that ridgetop vegetation cover is lower, and barren areas along alpine ridges are more prevalent in areas with relatively high goat use. We plan to continue these studies in collaboration with Montana State University by establishing and sampling replicated plots to characterize changes in alpine vegetation, estimate relative goat use, and compare potential effects among areas of relatively low and high goat use. Also, we plan to compare pre-goat vegetation conditions with current conditions using spectral responses from historical aerial photographs.