HAMPSTEAD, Md., May 27 (UPI) -- Maryland has rented a herd of goats to weed out invasive vegetation in wetlands near a new road bypass that are habitat for a rare species of turtle.
The State Highway Administration feared using mechanical mowers might kill the 4-inch bog turtles in Carroll County, the Baltimore Sun reports. Cows were rejected for the same reason.
The presence of the turtles in the area helped delay the Hampstead Bypass in an area northwest of Baltimore and 10 miles south of the Pennsylvania line for years. The road, which opens soon, was moved to a ridge to get it away from turtle habitat.
William Branch, a biologist working for the highway administration's office of environmental design, said goats have been used as mowers in environmentally sensitive areas in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. He told the Sun the animals were leased from a nearby farmer.
"We're curious about how this will work but we don't have any plans to do this as the standard procedure," he said.
The state has not released the exact location of the bog turtle site for fear the small but showy reptiles, identifiable by their orange necks, might end up as pets.
