The Canadian Goose is a beautiful bird. Because they were once endangered, they were placed under the protection of the U.S. Endangered Species Act. In 2001 they were delisted due to recovery. More information about the Canadian Goose can be found at the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
In Minerva Park, our lakes serve as home to many Canadian Geese. If you have been to the lakes recently you likely noticed the inundation of geese coming to find a morsel or two from any passerby.
The geese have grown comfortable with humans, and often can be intimidating and aggressive.
Feeding the ducks is a wonderful experience for children and adults alike, but with a population of geese such as the one in Minerva Park, it becomes a challenge. The geese are not only aggressive in search for food, they are destructive to the land surrounding the lakes. Their "tracks" are messy and unhealthy and a nuisance to be cleaned up.
Concern has been expressed by residents in the park over the population of geese we foster. Those who live near the lake have to contend with erosion of their yards, goose waste, and noise created by the geese.
While harassing the geese is not recommended, abstaining from feeding them is. They come back to our village to nest and find food and have been able to successfully do so. Each year more baby geese are born here and they return in following years to breed themselves.
Dogs provide a good goose deterrent, just by walking them along the lake, residents can help the geese decide to find another place to nest.
The number of ducks in our lakes have been reduced in recent years, presumably due to competition from the geese. Perhaps as we make attempts to reduce the goose population we can bring back some of the less destructive species like the Mallards, Pekins, and American Black Ducks.
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