by Terra Anders
It’s a warm summer day and for once the sun has decided not to work so hard. The weather is finally cooperating, making it a lovely afternoon to meet friends at the little cafe next to the lake. The agenda included a small table at the outdoor patio along the lake, a colorful iced drink decorated with a tiny umbrella, and some long awaited chit- chat with good friends. The last thing on the agenda was goose control. It all seemed like a great idea at the time, but that was before those boisterous geese found out that there was a party going on.
A large gaggle of gregarious geese can be quite annoying to lakeside cafes and rest spots at the city parks. It’s hard to believe that these flourishing gangs of Canadian Geese were once quite rare. Historically there was a time when goose control for these geese meant trying to increase their numbers, not decrease them. Better management of local wetlands across the United States over the last half decade has left the Canadian Geese population quite abundant. In fact, they have not only become abundant but in many areas they are now considered pest birds.
Canada Geese seem to have a very high tolerance of the human population. In fact, they often leave their life in the wild for city life. Almost every golf course in the city has a lake or two. It is not uncommon for housing developments to be built on the outskirts of protected wetlands. City parks are frequently centered around a lake or pond, where families of geese are the featured fowl. Since geese prefer a combination of wet and grassy terrain and an unobstructed view of both, these areas, these areas have become a paradise for geese. They normally have an adequate food supply, and their natural predators are still looking for them in the wild. The problem is that wherever there are large populations of geese, there is likely a problem with unsightly, and sometimes unhealthy goose droppings. It’s impossible to stop bird droppings from happening, but it is not impossible to keep the problem to a minimum.
There are several approaches than can be taken to reduce the goose population in locations that the birds share with humans. Keeping the geese down to a reasonable gaggle size can improve businesses’ outdoor sanitation and keep customers coming back. Most bird control experts agree that when it comes to geese, an integrated approach to control and maintenance is best. That is, use a combination of habitat modification along with proven goose deterrents.
Habitat modification, like removing tall vegetation around the lake can discourage long-term nesting, but this is often out of the hands of local businesses. Businesses may be able to join together to see if the city can take some action to minimize the problem by adjusting the landscaping around the lake or in front of the restaurant or cafe areas. A discussion with a goose control expert would be a good place to start. They can suggest what types of environmental modifications would best help, and these suggestions can be offered to the city for action.
Lakeside eateries still have several effective options to help deter geese from invading their property. One of the most effective would be a kind of electronic deterrent designed specifically for geese. Weatherproof outdoor programmable sound system can easily be installed at the outskirts of the cafes’ patio area . These sound systems are designed to broadcast the sound of a goose call of danger. The call lasts for two minutes and repeats at ten minute intervals. This type of goose deterrent plays actual distress and alarm calls of Canada Geese recorded in their natural habitat. When geese hear these calls, their natural instinct is to flee the area. Without the habitat modifications in place this option can provide some real relief for individual establishments by making geese think that that specific area is not a safe place for them to hang out. One system can cover up to one acre. Extra speakers can be added to the main unit to provide as much as three acres of coverage.
Some eateries keep a cute cafe canine posted at the lakeside property line. Dogs are the only predator that city geese have to deal with. Having a goose guard dog on site can also deter these pest birds from thinking that their feeding zone includes the patio of the restaurant. Whatever the choice, property and business owners have several reliable methods to control birds like geese. Talking to a bird control expert is step one. Putting these methods to work are fast, easy and very reasonably priced.
