Cull?  Kill?  Or call for help?

What is the first reaction from America’s suburbs when faced with an invasion of Canada geese?  For many, the cull/kill answer gushes forth fast and furious through frothy mouths and foaming lips.

There’s an absolute hatred for these hapless geese.  Many believe the birds don’t belong here; they should go back to Canada, or face the death penalty for messing with our yards, our playing fields and our golf courses.

Most nature lovers think otherwise.  It’s not the birds’ fault, they cry – we’ve taken away their habitat. We should find ways of living together.

 
Goose population control – a harvest festival

The latest estimates are that there are 5 million to 8 million Canada geese in North America (US and Canada).

About 2 million geese have been “harvested” in the U.S. and 600,000 in Canada each year since 2002.   Harvesting seems to be a non-confrontational word for “killing” – either through recreational hunting, or via government-approved “culling”.

In fact, some 13,000 were killed or culled in the U.S. by the U.S. Department of Agriculture between October 2005 and September 2006.  New Jersey, New York, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania were the principal cullers.

Beyond the abrupt end to the lives of the gassed geese, this shock and awe approach to nuisance wildlife control has its casualties – mostly in the court of public opinion.  To this day, people still talk and write with pain and hostility about the exterminations of hundreds of Canada geese at East Setauket and Belmont Lake State Park in Long Island over five years ago. 

And the Allegheny County Chief in Pennsylvania, Dan Onorato has egg on his face after 272 unfortunate Canada geese were rounded up in Pittsburgh’s North Park and gassed last July.  This was much to the consternation of many of his constituents and a host of other interested parties from elsewhere in the country.

These victims of an intolerant society were caught and culled when their defenses were down because all adult geese lose their flight feathers for a four-week period between mid June and the beginning of August. 

But, one thing’s for certain – to have been on the ground in Pittsburgh in July they were all resident geese.

What’s the Difference Between Resident and Migratory Canada Geese?

At first blush, not a lot – except that the population of migrant geese is declining, whereas the numbers of “resident” geese is on the up.

The geese that migrate on the Atlantic Flyway from the tundra of Newfoundland and northern Quebec fly each spring and autumn up and down the continent’s east coast.  This population used to winter in the deep south of the Flyway.  Most now go no further than New York and New Jersey down as far as the Chesapeake Bay region.  In milder winters they may stay even further north. 

They join extended family groups of resident geese in huge flocks to graze on sports fields, parks, golf courses – basically, on any expanse of short grass or fields of harvested crops.  In these situations, it’s very hard to tell the difference between visiting geese and resident geese.

 However, nearly all Canada geese you see in the lower forty-eight from April to mid September are almost certainly non-migrating resident geese.

Looking at the local level, the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation believes that Long Island plays host to 15,000 to 20,000 resident Canada geese.  Autumn and spring migrating seasons see the numbers jump to between 30,000 and 40,000. 

Where does all this lead us?

Confusion and conflict.

Both migrant and resident Canada geese are protected by the Federal Government under the Migratory Bird Act.  Sensible enough for migrating Canada geese, but puzzling to many in relation to the resident birds whose numbers have been growing so strongly.

As a result of this, in 2005 the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) devolved responsibility to the states.  The power to control the population by addling eggs (preventing their development), by killing or by culling is now managed at state level.  The USDA still wants to know what’s going on at a macro level.

Some municipalities and districts have tackled the problem with aggressive alacrity.  Predawn raids, round-ups, gas chambers.  A successful humane solution?  Not in the eyes of many.

The next GEESE OFF! blog will look at the animal rights movement's views and strategies.

Welcome to the first GEESE OFF! blog.

The purpose of this blog is to gather data, facts and opinions on the developing world of Canada goose control.

By way of background, GEESE OFF! has been in the goose control business for five years.  We started as a husband and wife team with our pet Border Collie, Patch. 

Patch,  “Chairman” of GEESE OFF!

 
We set out to build the business prudently.  We now have nine Border Collies, five staff, five vehicles and a mobile office on the road most times of most days covering 950 square miles of New York’s outer suburbs.  Our objective is to manage our growth so we don’t have to ask the question: “How big can we get before we get bad?”

GEESE OFF!’s customers range from racetracks to corporate campuses, from county parks to residential communities, from schools and universities to high-end private residences.  Together with our clients, we have seen what works and we have seen what doesn’t work.  This gives us the perspective to advise people on the options available to clear nuisance geese off their properties

A gathering gaggle of people and organizations have pitched their tent in the twilight field of Canada goose control.   On the aggressive marketing front, there are the X-rated chemical treatment companies!  These purveyors of chemical and “natural applications” treat the grass on which the geese feed.  Some work……until the grass has to be cut, or until rain or sprinklers wash off the concentrated substances, after which they have to be re-applied.  However, they are either funded by golf-playing mortgage-backed derivative bankers or they have found a way of selling product to someone (if their Google Adwords budgets are anything to go by).

We’ve also seen numerous electronic gismos – distress bird noises, laser shows and flashing lights.  And to top that. there is a bewildering array of fake animal magic - fake owls, balloons with hawk-eyes, fake hawks (even real hawks), fake kites, fake alligators, fake coyotes and, our favorites – cardboard cut-outs of Border Collies!  Really.

Some of these hi-tech and low-tech gismos often look and sound plausible enough.  Others are just downright silly.  In the coming weeks and months we may well discuss some of them further. 

However, anybody who’s seriously investigated efficient, effective goose control tends to come back to the solution that works best: Regular visits from highly-trained Border Collies on land with watercraft and/or swimming dogs in the water.

Golf courses have used them for years.  Greens-keepers were the first to recognize the problem and the first to address it.  Most savvy property owners with goose problems have followed their lead.  In future blogs, we’ll show you where these dogs work, how they work and why they work.

Before that, we'll take a look next week at the scope of the Canada geese problems in the United States