Riccardo Gullo came up with the novel idea after a recent census estimated the number of goats on the five-square kilometer Alicudi, the smallest of Sicily’s Aeolian archipelago, was six times the island’s year-round population of 100.

Credits: Unsplash; Author: @edoa_rdo;

The animals, adept at navigating Alicudi's steep cliffs, once lived harmoniously alongside the human inhabitants and became as much of a tourist attraction as its dormant volcano.

But their number has grown so rapidly in recent years that they started to gravitate from their usual abode at the top of the island towards the inhabited area, causing havoc for the population.