mountain goats find new home in idaho

Eighteen mountain goats were released in the Haynes Creek drainage, about 15 miles southeast of Salmon, Wednesday, September 12.

Five more animals were released Thursday.

"Mountain goats are native to Idaho," said Dale Toweill, Idaho Fish and Game's mountain goat program supervisor. "Projects to re-establish herds where they previously existed will allow more Idahoans to enjoy these unique animals."

No mountain goats live in the immediate area of the Idaho release site. Idaho Fish and Game personnel hope the animals transplanted, primarily young female mountain goats, will form the nucleus of a new herd.

The mountain goats were captured in southern Utah's Tushar Mountains near Beaver. The capture was supervised by personnel of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.

The Tushar Mountain herd, begun with animals transplanted from Utah's Wasatch Range in 1986 and supplemented with additional animals removed from Washington's Olympic Peninsula in 1988, has been growing rapidly and is larger than management objectives for the area.

The project was a cooperative venture between the Idaho Department of Fish and Game and the Utah Division of Wildlife and has been planned since 2004.

The Idaho transplant was conducted under the supervision of Tom Keegan, wildlife manager in Salmon. Each mountain goat was captured using a special net fired over the animal, entangling it so that workers could blindfold and hobble the animal.

Goats were then flown to a central processing area, where every animal was subjected to a thorough veterinary examination, inoculated and individually marked. Marks included ear tags and radio-transmitter collars that will allow biologists to track the movements of mountain goats in their new home.

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