Keeping a Sustainable Relationship With Mountain Goats

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Tlinget weaver terry rofcar is a member of the tlinget tribe of south east alaska. Her woven mountain goat robes are gorgeous with geometric accents and long, dark tassels that swing from the shoulder blades. One robe, she notes, might take her 900 hours to weave. It took me 17 and a half years to gather enough wool to weave one robe, using every wool collection method there is natural science and biology needed to harvest the mountain goat wool.

Mountain goats are not goats. And there’s only one living species, Oreamnos americanus. WHAT?? Montana-based wildlife biologist and Oreamnologist Julie Cunningham counts mountain goats from helicopters, traps and tests them for science, and spends even her off days searching for them on mountaintops. We cover their population, sensual mating habits, the feel of their wool, pungent goatwhiff, tips for hikers and how these animals defy gravity scaling near-vertical cliffs. Oh also, why your favorite trail might be delicious.

Julie Cunningham’s bio

A donation was made to the Rocky Mountain Goat Alliance: GoatAlliance.org

You may also enjoy: Cervidology (DEER), Bovine Neuropathology (HEADBUTTING), Neuropathology (CONCUSSIONS), Cryoseismology (ICEQUAKES), Bryology (MOSS), Phenology (SEASONS)

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Sound editing by Jarrett Sleeper of MindJam Media

Transcripts by Emily White of The Wordary