Goose Facts
SOME BASIC FACTS ABOUT CANADA GEESE:
Evolutionarily, geese have nested in the tundra that provided low vegetation near open water. We have recreated the components of these types of ecosystems in our simplified landscaping choices around our homes and parklands with mowed lawns and few bushes, shrubs or trees, butting right up to a lake. We have given geese an ideal habitat for breeding and foraging with minimal areas for potential predators to hide.
GOOSE Information:
- Able to reproduce by age 2 or 3
- Geese mate for life, but often will find another mate if one dies
- Return to same nesting / feeding areas every year
- Eggs hatch in 28 days with broods averaging 4 goslings
- Can live for up to 20 years
- Each pair raises 4 goslings per year, so over a lifetime, a pair may raise 32 to 40 goslings
Geese are federally protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, therefore there are certain things that legally you can and cannot do to remove geese from your property:
| Can | Cannot (w/o federal permit) |
|---|---|
| Harass birds prior to nesting using noisemakers, dogs, brooms, rakes | Injure/capture/kill (except under applicable hunting regs) |
| Remove accumulated nesting materials prior to nesting | Disturb geese on established nest |
| Erect fences &/or barriers | Collect or destroy eggs |
