s witnessed exponential growth over the past decade. Such geese seldom leave their year-round habitat. Because of their dramatic increase in number it is resident Canadian geese that are creating conflicts with farmers, home and business owners, and in general destroying the habitat in a variety of ways from fecal pollution to over-feeding. This dilemma creates a problem with respect to managing the resident goose population. This research will discuss the history and current context of resident Canadian goose populations in Virginia, including an Integrated Pest Management Program designed to ameliorate their impact on habitat.
The Canadian goose is a large water fowl. Body size can vary but adults can grow in length to 45 inches and weigh anywhere from 7 to 15 at maturity (Canada 1). The Canadian goose illustrates a grayish-brown body with a white breast, black feet, bill and neck, and a unique white patch on each cheek (SEE Appendix One). It is not uncommon for such geese to live to the age of twenty-five years or beyond. Juvenile Canada geese reach sexual maturity at age 2 but typically do not breed before age 3 (Managing 2). Once they bond, pairs remain together for life. If one partner dies, the other will re-mate. Similarly, each pair of male and female geese will lay more than one clutch of eggs if predators destroy a laid clutch, but each pair only nurtures one brood per year.
Though the average nest size of resident Canadian geese in Virginia is 5 eggs, each is capable of lying from 1-15 eggs per breeding season (Managing 2). Eggs are dropped at the rate of one every 1 and ½ days but incubation does not commence until all eggs have been laid (Managing 2). The influx of Canadian geese in the Newport News, Virginia, area is exacerbated by the fact that Canadian geese are large birds with few predators when mature. The following table demonstrates the relationships in nature of Canadian geese with respect to ...