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All Morocco Tamri The Tree Goats of Morocco

The Tree Goats of Morocco

Morocco's Argania trees are infested with nut-hungry goats.

Tamri, Morocco

Added By
Eric Grundhauser
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  Ursula / Atlas Obscura User
Goats climbing an Argan tree   marco arcangeli
Goats in tree, Morocco   Caroline Granycome
Goats on an Argan tree near Taroudannt (Morocco)   Dromedar61
Goat in Argan Nut tree, Morocco   Elgaard
Tree goats Morocco   jackmac34
Goats in Tree, Morocco   springer / Atlas Obscura User
Goats in Tree Morocco   springer / Atlas Obscura User
Argan tree climbing goats in Sous Valley   Jaszmina Szendrey / Atlas Obscura User
(Jan ‘17)   burkh4rt / Atlas Obscura User
Goats in Tree - Morocco   springer / Atlas Obscura User
(Jan ‘17)   burkh4rt / Atlas Obscura User
  Ursula / Atlas Obscura User
Goats in Argan Nut treen, Morocco seen from the below   Elgaard
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About

The Argania tree is not the most aesthetically pleasing plant in the world with a rough, thorny bark and gangly, crooked branches. But these Moroccan trees still tend to attract admirers, thanks in large part to the hordes of goats. The animals stand on the impossibly precarious branches and get down to their seasonal feast. Far from just a single ambitious goat climbing a single tree, the animals tend to swarm into the branches in number.

Local farmers condone and even cultivate this bizarre feeding practice, keeping the goats away from the trees while the fruit matures and releasing them at the right time. There is also a secondary benefit to the goats' habits which is found in their poop. After the goats finish eating the fruit and nuts off the tree, they pass valuable clumps of seeds which are then pressed to create the sought-after Argan oil.

Unfortunately, since the tree goats can be quite profitable for their owners, more and more of them have been brought into the area, causing a general decline in the health of the remaining Argania trees. Hopefully, the delightful tree goats won't eat themselves out of a tree to perch in.  

Related Tags

Animals Goats Trees Plants

Know Before You Go

Although it is illegal, scammers will tie goats all day to the trees in the hot sun hoping to elicit money from you when you stop for pictures. If this happens, leave immediately. It's the only way to send the message that animal cruelty doesn't pay. 

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Community Contributors

Added By

EricGrundhauser

Edited By

RSP, tammylromer, TeaAndCoffeeLover, fortnite...

  • RSP
  • tammylromer
  • TeaAndCoffeeLover
  • fortnite
  • Jaszmina Szendrey
  • Meg
  • Ursula
  • springer
  • burkh4rt

Published

August 23, 2016

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Sources
  • http://www.viralnova.com/goats-in-trees/
  • http://whenonearth.net/tree-climbing-goats-morocco/
The Tree Goats of Morocco
Tamri
Morocco
30.7, -9.833333

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