Considering Canada geese
Think “Canada goose” and your
first image might be a V-formation in the sky.
Or geese in water, suddenly
diving to harvest bottom grasses. Or, undeniably, the messes they make on
sidewalks and paths. But messes happen
everywhere, right?
In fact, there’s much to be said about these birds that’s
positive. And surprising. For instance, they typically mate for life – which
can be up to 24 years — usually returning to the same site every year to lay
their eggs.
After the nest of twigs, grasses and similar material is made, the
mama goose shapes it into a bowl with her body and proceeds with her maternal
duties.
With their eyes open, downy goslings hatch after about a
month, and within a day, they leave the nest to follow their parents. The
gander protects his mate and offspring, sometimes hissing away seeming threats
– as he may have done earlier when competing for the goose of his choice.
Born
swimmers, goslings stay with the family for up to a year, leaning needed skills
from their parents and potentially growing up to 20 pounds in weight and five
and a half feet in length.
While raising the family, adults – who look alike, by the
way — molt, or shed feathers. Since most are flight feathers, entire families are
made temporarily flightless at the same time.
Geese seeking a spring or fall change of venue follow
strict migration paths with traditional stop-over sites. (Well, when you drive
to the shore, don’t you always stop at the same frozen custard stand?) They can fly between 40-55 miles an hour, and
travel up to 1,500 miles a day. Their well-known V-formation reduces wind
resistance and keeps the flock together. As you might imagine, the goose in the lead works
the hardest, so the birds take turns in this role.
Canada
geese have serrated bills, helping them to both slice through vegetation and groom,
so they’re not only streamlined and strong, but also well-coifed, or feathered.
Essentially herbivores, they subsist on grasses, sedges, grains, and berries –
which explains their habitats of fresh water or grassland. But they don’t turn
up their noses/bills at fish and insects they may encounter.
Found across North America, Canada geese have been
introduced to parts of Europe and New Zealand.
(You read that right: Australia wasn’t
mentioned in the National Geographic source I consulted. What do Aussies have against them?)
These days, non-migrating Canada geese can be regarded as
pests. “They consume vast quantities of
vegetation, foul their surroundings, and may even collide with planes near
airports,” says Kim Kurki, author-illustrator of the beautiful National Wildlife’s World of Birds: A Beginner’s Guide (2014) — one of my info sources here. (The
others were Stan Tekiela’s Birds of New Jersey Field Guide
(2000) and various online National Geographic sites.)
However, Kurki adds, Canada geese are “living
beings that we are compelled to treat humanely and live in harmony with.”
–Pat Summers