Urban Canada Geese
 Not
long ago, the appearance of geese on a neighborhood pond was
unusual. So rare were these birds, whose populations had
been decimated by human exploitation, that the mere sight of
one was cause to celebrate. Now, however, Canada geese are
considered problems in many communities, and feelings have
turned against them. How did this change come about?At
the end of the 19th century, over-hunting and mass killing
for market had reduced Canada goose populations to near
extinction. The International Migratory Bird Treaty Act was
created in part to protect the populations that remained. In
the early 1960s, small groups of the "giant" Canada goose
were rediscovered at a number of refuges, and federal and
state agencies began a concerted effort to rebuild
populations. Geese were captured and moved into new areas,
eggs were taken and incubated to encourage second clutches,
and in places where populations were re-established,
"surplus" birds were moved to areas where geese were not yet
found. Although these efforts were probably made with good
intentions, they represent one of the most dramatic examples
of human action leading directly to widespread
human-wildlife conflict. The principal reason for the
growing conflict is that relocated geese have not learned
their species' migratory pathways, and instead have remained
year-round in urban and suburban areas where wide lawns,
parks, golf courses, and artificial ponds make perfect goose
habitats. These populations have expanded to the point
where, by the mid-1980s, many states were concerned about
"too many" geese.
The problems associated with Canada geese are largely
aesthetic. They stem from the fact that geese prefer to
graze on residential lawns, golf courses, and playing
fields. Where geese graze, they also defecate. Goose feces
can be a serious annoyance to golfers, ball players, and
others using grassy areas. Some worry the feces may also
pose human health problems, but to date, there is no
evidence to associate geese with human illness, beyond a
documented example of allergic hypersensitivity in one
individual. We should acknowledge, however, that large
numbers of geese occupying small bodies of water in suburban
and urban areas could potentially pose an indirect health
risk. The means to solve such problems when they occur
should be directed at the ecological conditions that promote
degraded water quality, not at geese.
For some communities, the preferred method for dealing
with "problem" goose populations is the roundup, a process
in which flightless geese are herded into pens, boxed in
transport cages, and sent to slaughter at commercial poultry
processing houses. In areas where food retailers refuse to
accept meat from wild animals exposed to environmental
chemicals, the "expendable" birds may be put to death using
lethal gases. It is the practice of roundups, more than
anything else, that has divided communities. It is believed
by many who care for geese and the environment to be
unnecessary, illogical, and inhumane.
It will take a combination of tools and strategies to
restore harmony between urban Canada geese and people. The
solutions to the conflicts will not come from state and
federal agencies or nongovernmental organizations, but from
individuals and communities that care about the birds, the
environment, and the well-being of their communities. When
The HSUS advocates life-affirming solutions as the only
reasonable response to the problems people sometimes have
with Canada geese, we do so as much to affirm our own lives
as theirs.
Article reprinted
from the Humane Society of the United States |
