Canada Geese

“Those geese have become a nuisance,” said the customer service representative as I commented excitedly about seeing a Canada goose outside by the James River. This was eight years ago, and I was registering for a tubing trip down the river, which runs through Richmond, Virginia, where I was visiting my daughter and son-in-law. 

“A nuisance?” I asked her, perplexed. The employee said that the tubing operation had only recently re-opened after having been closed due to contamination from goose excrement. 

“And those geese can be aggressive and hurt you, so watch out!” she exclaimed. The trip wasn’t sounding like much fun anymore. 

Virginia is not the only state with nuisance Canada geese. Louisiana has its share of these unruly “honkers,” as they are known. As a matter of fact, Larry Reynolds, Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries’ (LDWF) waterfowl program manager, said these geese are his number-one nuisance call for waterfowl. Having adapted to urban habitats and with their populations expanding, Reynolds said, the geese have given up their annual migrations to become permanent residents. 

Traditionally, the Canada goose species migrated to Louisiana during winter and were hunted as prized waterfowl. However, with the expansion of agriculture in more northern states such as Arkansas, Tennessee, and Illinois, where water projects and reservoirs were being implemented, the geese began to winter farther north; and Louisiana hunters were no longer finding Canada geese during hunting season. Biologists realized the geese were simply adapting their migration patterns to minimize energy expenditure.

There are actually two species of Canada geese (Branta canadensis): the Canada goose and the Cackling goose (Branta hutchinsii), a smaller version of the former. For this article, we are referring only to the giant Canada goose (Branta canadensis maxima), one of the subspecies of Branta canadensis. The Canada goose was thought to have become extinct until a few were re-discovered in Rochester, Minnesota, in the 1950s. They were re-introduced for hunting and conservation purposes into several states, including Louisiana. These “honkers” have done very well since then, having taken to urban areas so well that they have become pests.  

A few Canada geese aren’t a problem, said Reynolds. It’s when their populations grow and they begin nesting in urban areas that Reynolds begins to receive phone calls. With expanding urban development and more subdivisions featuring green space and ponds, the Canada geese have received an unspoken invitation to set up home.

These geese can weigh as much as twenty pounds and have a wingspan up to 7.3 feet. A goose this size is intimidating when it comes after you across your lawn. The gander, or male goose, is especially aggressive during nesting season, and he will harass anyone who gets too close to the nest. Their bills can be surprisingly sharp. Then, there is the matter of excrement. Big birds, big poop; and most folks consider it a big mess rather than free fertilizer.

In the Baton Rouge area, there are several places Canada geese can be found hanging out: Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge General Medical Center on Bluebonnet, Woman’s Hospital, the LSU Golf Course, and the Mockler Beverage Company. There are many neighborhoods, as well, which have had geese problems. Reynolds said that come breeding season, when the poop and aggressive ganders begin to get out of hand, his telephone starts ringing. 

With expanding urban development and more subdivisions featuring green space and ponds, the Canada geese have received an unspoken invitation to set up home.

The geese are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, so no action can be taken until a permit is obtained from the U. S. Department of Agriculture’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service–Wildlife Services. The mission of Wildlife Services is to provide federal leadership and expertise to resolve wildlife-human conflicts. Once a permit is obtained, LDWF can make a site visit to assess next steps, but Reynolds makes sure there is a consensus within the neighborhood before he does because just as many neighbors are pro geese as anti geese—poop and all.

Wildlife Services has documented a sixteen-fold population increase during the last four decades, which means year-round concern in the aviation field. Canada geese were the culprits on January 15, 2009, when U.S. Airways Flight 1549 was forced to make an emergency water landing in the Hudson River. A flock of Canada geese collided with the plane, and at least three or four geese were sucked into its engines. 

What measures can be taken to control the population once a permit has been obtained? In certain areas, the birds can be shot and brought to the local food bank. This scenario doesn’t usually work well in the suburbs. With nesting geese, Reynolds said it’s best to leave the egg on the nest as removal only causes the female goose to lay another one. Instead, the egg can be addled, meaning made unviable, by either shaking it so that the inner membrane detaches or by covering the egg in a thin coat of oil, which prevents gas exchange through the shell. The female goose will continue to incubate the egg unaware.

Reynolds was clear that the reason the goose population is expanding is because we are providing them a perfect habitat: green grass, fertilized lawns, and plenty of water. No good deed goes unpunished, it seems.