||| FROM LILI HEIN |||
The Land Bank is proposing hunting of Canada geese at the Coffelt Farm Preserve in order to limit crop damage on the property. Deer hunting is also included. See link for details in the Stewardship and Management Plan (giving only a two-week comment period that started Thanksgiving week). The plan will be considered for approval this Friday, December 18:
http://sjclandbank.org/coffelt-farm-preserve-stewardship-and-management-plan/
[Editor’s note: Pertinent text from Page 26 of 33 page document:
In addition to requesting permission to hunt deer within the Preserve, the Coffelt Farm interim lessee sought permission to hunt non-migratory (resident) Canada geese (Branta canadensis). Populations of resident Canada geese have increased dramatically over the past 25 years due to the lack of predators, prohibitions on hunting, and a dependable year-round supply of food and water. Canada geese are particularly attracted to mowed fields and lawns around homes, golf courses, parks, and similar areas next to open water. The Land Bank recognizes that many species of birds use the Preserve’s wetlands and has identified wetland habitat protection and enhancement as key conservation objectives. However, there is wide recognition that Canada geese cause crop damage and this appears to be the case at Coffelt Farm Preserve. To limit such damage and to protect other desirable species, the Land Bank proposes to limit bird hunting by the interim and long-term lessee(s) to legal hunting of non-migratory Canada geese found within the pastures and the developed farm area. Such hunting shall be in accordance with WDFW regulations. Bird Coffelt Farm Preserve Stewardship and Management Plan Page 27 of 33 hunting will not be open to the public nor will it be allowed within the fenced herbaceous wetland.]
Perhaps the geese are eating too much grass, which competes with the sheep and hay making. However, there are safer ways than guns to deter geese. Also, there could be greater community engagement by offering other public access, such as bird watching, with the wetlands attracting many birds on migration between the US, Canada, and beyond. Let’s encourage the Land Bank to have more public process and listen to comments from the community requesting other ways to provide public access to Coffelt Farm Preserve to enjoy the beauty of the islands!
Just train a few resident dogs to chase them off. Killing doesn’t have to be the ONLY option.
Thank you to the Land Bank for allowing hunting and being proactive in farmland stewardship and management. The overpopulation of geese pose a threat to the soils and water quality at the Coffelt Farm preserve and also to neighboring farms and properties. This is not a matter of them “eating too much grass”. This is a mater of contamination of the soils and groundwater that is necessary and vital to sustainable agriculture.
As a near by farm that is having to battle this problem, resulting in sick livestock, unacceptable water quality degradation, and soil contamination, I appreciate that the land bank is allowing what is necessary to preserve the land. Simply scaring the birds to the neighbors property is not a solution.
I hope the Land Bank does allow public comment on this topic so that we as neighbors can support efforts to keep our land and water from becoming unusable due to overpopulation.
I agree with the author that this is a local community decision. Thanks for the important highlight.
I love my migratory and resident Canada geese 99% of the time. I do send the dog after them when there’s new seeding. However, I am in favor of time-tested depredation hunting as a viable option, especially as analyzed for agriculture considerations. One does have to audit as well as possible wildlife, ag , and public land management to reach a conclusion. I believe Coffelt management has undergone considerable open process so far.
I suspect rereading the fine print of the Land Bank’s plan, which the Editor nicely included, would help:
“To limit such damage and to protect other desirable species, the Land Bank proposes to limit bird hunting by the interim and long-term lessee(s) to legal hunting of non-migratory Canada geese found within the pastures and the developed farm area. ”
Sounds to me like they are simply talking about allowing the farmers who lease the land and farm it the ability to deal with the situation, following the state regulations and the management plan for the land.
I am supportive of such a proposal.
Did you know geese have a drastically lower divorce rate than us humans? Yep, they stick together, mate for life, mourn when a mate is killed, feel pain just like you and me, and they raise their young in community. Unless a mate is killed you won’t see any single moms or dads raising their young. I think their rate of domestic violence is pretty low too. Yes, they poop, but so do we. And, sometimes we contaminate our lakes, streams, and drinking water with all sorts of bad stuff. In addition to killing wild things we seem to really enjoy killing each other too, but not usually because we poop too much. Mostly our reasons are less well defined than pooping on grass, like politics, boundaries, religion, race, animosity, hate, greed, but mostly just because you’re different than me.
But, back to the geese ….
There are non-violent and non-lethal ways to deter geese such as:
• Curtailing Reproduction
• Site Aversion
• Habitat Modification
Curtaining reproduction combined with strong, effective, well timed site aversion is the crux of most successful programs.
When adult geese are not tied to flightless goslings after the nesting season, these adults can be harassed away from preferred foraging sites before summer brings large numbers of people to those sites. And clearing open spaces of goose concentrations—with their attendant droppings—prior to the mid-summer molt eliminates the most significant conflicts. Similarly, modifying habitat makes site aversion, especially with trained dogs, more effective by making geese
feel less secure from predators.
Perhaps there’s hope, but probably not. We’re pretty set in our ways.
Jeff, how does one curtail reproduction in geese? Seriously, how do you do it?
Yes wild life management is necessary when habit becomes too attractive to migrate elsewhere.Same with the deer problem.We need some common sense here.allow some controlled population eradication.dogs to chase them on to a neighbors farm is not the answer….like kicking the can down the road
Thea, search “Solving problems with Canada Geese” and download a really informative pdf by the Humane Society.
Thea, from the PDF it’s clear that humanely dealing with geese involves a many month, many pronged approach including “harassment“, addling of eggs which means moving them or disguising them or oiling them, etc. etc. etc. It doesn’t take too much thought to realize that Coffelt Farm would need a heck of a lot of volunteers to make that happen.
This is a reasonable proposal. Now, what can we do about the deer???