August 19: Watch Where You Step
Canada geese enjoy the protection of the pond at Oak Point Farm
Going for a walk through the fields at Oak Point Farm sometimes turns into a delicate dance to avoid stepping in goose droppings. Canada geese love the preserve, with its protective freshwater pond, saltwater shoreline, and fields full of tasty tender grasses. These birds thrive in the same areas that humans do, like our farm fields, yards, golf courses, airports, swimming areas, and city parks. So despite the fact that they are a native bird, they are often viewed as a nuisance when they descend upon our territory in large numbers, flatten vegetation, and leave their excrement behind.
Canada geese frequent BRLT preserves as many of them provide the large open areas they require to watch for predators, and nearby waterways to escape to if threatened. The preserves provide food for the geese as they graze on grass and seeds and dabble in shallow water for aquatic plants. While Canada geese can be migratory, some of our preserve population will stay with us year round if they are able to find a reliable food source and open water. When flocks migrate or move from place to place, they often fly in the well-recognized V formation, with experienced individuals taking turns leading the group.
During much of the year the geese stay together in large flocks, with many of these birds being related to one another. Pairs remain together for life, and interestingly they often match themselves by size, with larger mates choosing larger mates and smaller mates choosing smaller mates. After mating in early spring, the female selects a slightly elevated site on the ground near the water and builds a large open cup shaped nest. She will incubate the eggs while the male guards her and the nest. In about a month, she will hatch around 2 to 8 goslings, all of which will get busy pecking away at small objects as they learn to graze.
Canada geese scat and feather
Goslings never leave their parents sides for their entire first year, and sometimes will combine with other families of geese to create “gang broods”. These groups of 2 to 5 individual gosling families will travel, feed, and laze together, always accompanied by at least one adult. As summer progresses the birds become more social and start gathering in larger numbers at food sources, such as the fields and pond at Oak Point Farm. While together they compete in displays involving head pumping, hissing, honking, and vibrating neck feathers. Sometimes if fights escalate, geese will grab each other by the throat and hit each other with their wings.
So while their behavior may make them a nuisance to some, it is worth recognizing that the Canada geese is a native bird that has adapted well to its surroundings and can be entertaining to observe. If you want to witness these birds more often, experts recommend building a nesting platform well before breeding season to attract them. If on the other side of things, you want to repel these birds, a quick google search will give you dozens of humane solutions to discourage geese, although none of them seem to work very well. This is something we discovered at Oak Point Farm when we were trying to come up with ways to prevent people from stepping in goose droppings. It just looks like you are going to have to watch where you step.
