Plot:
This visitor tells the story of the Judas goat. It’s not the goat’s fault. It knows no more about radio collars than it does about God or quantum physics. It just knows that it likes to be with other goats.
The goats are invasive on the Galapagos. As bright as men are, they can’t eradicate them. The Judas goat helps.
People like to be with people, too, across the great expanse of space.
Thoughts:
Reading the story got me wondering if Judas goats were real. They are, but not exactly as depicted in the story.
The author’s take on it is more layered. Simply being around other goats brings destruction down on the whole group, but only because goats are destroying the habitat of native species.
While I can’t say I was surprised by the ending of this sad little story, it engaged me to the end. It also brought my attention to something I didn’t know about.
Bio:
Author K.S. O’Neill has had at least four other pieces published in Daily Science Fiction. In a blurb that accompanied earlier work, he said he lives with his lovely wife, the writer Joy Kennedy-O’Neill, on the Texas coast, where he teaches math at a small college.
“The Judas Goat” can be read here.
Title: The Judas Goat
Author: K.S. O’Neill
First published: Daily Science Fiction, September 28, 2020
Reviews of Old and New Stories. Mostly Old 