Thirty hungry goats are released along the bluff edge at Indian Mounds Regional Park in St. Paul to kick off the city’s first-ever effort to reduce the spread of invasive species using goats, on Tuesday, May 2, 2017. (Scott Takushi Pioneer Press)

A goat chows vegetation along the bluff edge at Indian Mounds Regional Park in St. Paul in the city’s first-ever effort to reduce the spread of invasive species using goats, Tuesday, May 2, 2017. Over the next several months, goats will roam inside fenced-in sections of parkland along the Mississippi River to eat unwanted vegetation – the most environmentally friendly way to enhance the natural habitat. (Scott Takushi Pioneer Press)

Jake Langeslag of Goat Dispatch walks behind thirty hungry goats released along the bluff edge at Indian Mounds Regional Park in St. Paul. (Scott Takushi Pioneer Press)

Goats are well-suited for eating and destroying unwanted vegetation because they are easily able to navigate the steep bluff-edge terrain, are light on the land, and enjoy eating brushy, woody vegetation. (Scott Takushi Pioneer Press)

Over the next several months, goats will roam inside fenced-in sections of parkland along the Mississippi River in St. Paul to eat unwanted vegetation – the most environmentally friendly way to enhance the natural habitat. (Scott Takushi Pioneer Press)



Thirty hungry goats are released inside of a double electric fence along the bluff edge at Indian Mounds Regional Park in St. Paul to kick off the city’s first-ever effort to reduce the spread of invasive species using goats, Tuesday, May 2, 2017. Scott Takushi Pioneer Press

St. Paul has released a goat herd on a bluff above the city. Yes, goats.

On Tuesday, St. Paul Parks and Recreation freed 30 of the animals to roam inside fenced-in areas along the bluff edge at Indian Mounds Regional Park.

It’s the first step in a cleanup effort that will roll out over the course of several months along the Mississippi River, with the goal of reducing invasive species and unwanted vegetation — which the goats are more than happy to devour.

City officials say goats are well suited to the work because they can navigate the steep terrain, they aren’t hard on the land, and they adore brushy, woody invasive plants.

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The goat unleashing began at 10 Mounds Blvd., but river visitors can expect to see them again in different sections of the city’s riverfront. The goats come from Goat Dispatch, a rental company.

The effort is the result of a partnership between St. Paul’s Greater River Passage team and the city’s natural resources division.

Goats in Mounds Park! pic.twitter.com/fOzMwVwD0P — St Paul Library (@stpaullibrary) May 2, 2017

The GreatRiverPassage is the city’s master plan for 26 miles of Mississippi riverfront.