Hawthorns Area of Windy Hill Open Space Preserve Targeted Grazing Project

Beginning Sunday, June 9th for approximately two weeks, goats will graze a 14-acre grassland area of the Hawthorns Area of Windy Hill Open Space Preserve that is also

periodically managed with mechanical mowing. Grazing and mowing are both grassland management tools that can help achieve multiple goals; at Hawthorns, we are using both to 1) control the spread of non-native, invasive yellow star thistle; 2) reduce the non-native herbaceous thatch layer to support other native grassland species; and 3) support fire fuel reduction. The goats will be in a temporary, electric-fenced paddocks visible from Alpine

Road and the Sweet Springs Trail and will be overseen by a herder with Livestock Guardian Dogs (LGDs), which may occasionally bark. Please do not touch the fences or interact with the working dogs while the goats are on-property.

Native grasslands are one of the most biodiverse and threatened ecosystems in North

America. They evolved with, and can benefit from, periodic disturbances to prevent loss of biodiversity to introduced species, and encroachment from shrubs and forest. These

disturbances were historically provided by grazing wildlife herds, natural fires and Native American burning practices no longer on the landscape.

Midpen works to ensure that grazing treatments maximize benefits and minimizes impacts to sensitive species habitat. Temporary goat grazing is one of many land management tools that helps Midpen maintain grasslands to protect their biodiversity and manage vegetation to improve wildland fire safety.

For more information regarding Midpen’s Conservation Grazing Program, please visit openspace.org/conservation-grazing.

Staff contact – Matthew Shapero, Conservation Grazing Program Manager, mshapero@openspace.org