By Vic Coggins

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Mountain goat restoration in Oregon began in 1950 with five goats from Washington. The goats were released into the Wallowa Mountains of Eastern Oregon. In the 1980's 33 more goats were released into the Wallowas and another 21 were released into the Elkhorn Mountains.

Since 2000, 102 goats have been released to five different sites-Hat Point, Cornucopia, PO Saddle, Eagle Creek and Menaha. All of these transplants seem to have been successful because Oregon now has an estimated population of 690 animals, which includes a small but very important herd of 15 in the Strawberry Mountains of Grant County.

Through the years, hunters have harvested 60 animals. Because of the difficulty in differentiating males and females, 13 were nannies.

Future objectives for mountain goats are to establish populations of goats in all suitable habitats, to monitor those herds and their health and to focus research on the needs of local populations.