Newspaper Page Text
The Taylor County News, April 30, 2020, Page G.
Preventing Canada Geese From Becoming A Nuisance
The Canada goose is an
adaptable bird found every
where from open farmland
and rural reservoirs to subur
ban neighborhood ponds, of
fice complexes, parks, and
other developed areas. This
ability to thrive in a variety
of habitats can sometimes
bring an increase m nuisance
complaints, according to the
Georgia Department of Natu
ral Resources’ Wildlife Re
sources Division.
‘‘Geese that have adapted to
people, either because they
are being fed or because they
are so close to humans on a
daily basis, can become ag
gressive,” says Greg Balkcom,
State Waterfowl Biologist for
the Wildlife Resources Divi
sion, ‘‘When you have resi
dent geese nesting near de
veloped areas like office com
plexes or apartment build
ings, the geese will defend
their nest against all intrud
ers, and that may include
chasing or charging at
people.”
Prevention Methods
* Harassment: Landowners
who don’t want geese on their
property should first try a va
riety of harassment tech
niques, including chemical re
pellents, mylar balloons, wire/
string barriers, and noise
makers. These methods are
proven to help reduce goose
problems. However, they do
require consistency from the
property owner and are not
always 100% effective. Now is
the best time to act, because
geese are just beginning to
select their nesting sites.
Scaring the geese away now
will reduce problems later in
the summer. For more, visit
https://georgia wildlife, com/
nuisancewildlife, scroll down
to “Nuisance Wildlife,” then
“Canada Geese.”
* Reduce Goose Reproduc
tion: The U.S. Fish and Wild
life Service issued regulations
that allow for additional con
trol measures, apart from ha
rassment techniques and tra
ditional hunting, to help ad-
dress nuisance goose prob
lems. One of those regula
tions is a permit for reducing
goose reproduction through
nest and egg destruction or
egg addling or oiling, which
prevent the eggs from hatch
ing.
"A perm it can be useful in cer
tain situations-such as a ho
meowner that may have
geese nesting close to home,”
says Ralkoom. “Additionally,
it is a way to keep a minimum
number of adult geese on the
property without the popula
tion growing too large
through years of unchecked
reproduction.”
The permits are available at
the U.S, Fish and Wildlife
Service’s website (https://
epermits.fws.gov/eRCGR/
geSI.aspx). The website also
contains useful information
on the methods for addling or
oiling the eggs or destroying
the nests, and when each
method may be appropriate.
The nesting season for geese
is just getting underway, and
landowners and land manag
ers who have problems with
geese (homeowners, golf
course managers, city/county
managers, etc. ^especially
during the summer molting
season-may be able to act now
and reduce their nuisance
problems later this year.
It is important to remember
that Canada geese are a pro
tected species under state and
federal law. It is illegal to
hunt, kill, sell, purchase, or
possess Canada geese except
according to Georgia’s migra
tory bird regulations or other
federal permits.
For more information, visit
the U.S. Fish and Wildlife
Service website at https://
epermits.fws.gov/eRCGR/
geSI.aspx.
For a brochure on a variety
of methods of dealing with
nuisance geese, visit
www.georgiawildlife.com/
nuisancewildlife. Also visit
www.youtube.com/
georgia wildlife and search
that page for “nuisance” for a
Wildlife Resources Division
produced video.
ARTNERS
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Butler, GA 31006
478-862-4644
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