Pond Boss Forums GENERAL QUESTIONS Wildlife Management Goose question

I have been diligent and relentless in harassing geese - especially in the spring during nesting season - to keep them away. I thought I was in the clear this year when all of a sudden a family showed up yesterday (mother, father and 5 goslings). I never saw a nest and have no idea where they came from. I harassed them for an hour or so (almost ran them over with the zero turn) but them seemed to care less. I got home from work this evening and they are nowhere in sight.

Do geese move their entire family, even with flightless goslings, if they feel threatened? I can't figure out why they showed up and why they left.

Same thing happened here. I sicked the dog after them but was he'd drown trying to swim them down. I shot the 22 semi off half a dozen times and they would'nt come off the pond. Got out the 12 ga and fired near them 3 times with no success. Next day they were gone. I saw them down the road at the graveyard pond. I figured the goslings couldn't fly yet so the parents just walked them away from a threatening place. Just my guess.

Momma and Daddy will walk goslings almost 1/2 mile through the woods from a neighbors pond to mine.

I send Kate after the geese, and after she swims them around the pond a time or 2 they get the idea and leave. Might be a different story if goslings are involved. Those little suckers can dive and swim underwater!

Bob you mean old man!

I threw rocks at three of them once. They finally got the message when I accidentally hit one with golf ball size rock. It made a nice thud too. I'll bet there was a bruise.

We had to chase off a pair that had a nest on the island in our old refurbished pond. Lots of tall weeds and cover. Finally gave them the idea they were not welcome.

Another pair showed up the other day looking over the island. Grandsons and I swam out to the island (practically drowned we laughed so hard, stumbling in the mud and falling down - good times with my grandsons). Swam a rope over and pulled a rake to the island and whacked all the weeds and the remains of a nest the first pair made and had abandoned.

Wife said island looks better now and there is less cover so hopefully the geese will become less of a problem. She may expect us to swim out there every week now to maintain it though.

I've run them off with the 4-wheeler, shot shotgun near them, fired 22 pistol around them. They are determined birds, but so far have been able to convince them to move along to less disruptive areas.

Thanks. Maybe the Away With Geese light is working better than I thought.

"Bob you mean ol man" Hey stoner punk, get off my case.
We have an early season and you can take 5 a day for ten days. Wish they would have a spring season for two weeks with a limit of 6 birds over a 4 week period. They have made a new rule that you can destroy the nests and eggs.

Stoner punk WTH!

You're not much older than me Bob. Maybe 30 years?

We have had a pair that returns every morning and I pop a couple 22 shells around them to scare them away.

Funny story though... My wife calls me yesterday and asks me" How do you take this gun off safety and load it?" I told her if she doesn't know how to do that, she shouldn't be shooting it. She then proceeds to tell me that that those geese are out there and she guaranteed that she is a better shot because Ive missed for 3 straight weeks! She thought I was trying to hit them! I could only imagine coming home later that night if she knew how to shoot the rifle, 2 dead geese, DNR arresting my wife...

jstiz, hilarious!!!!
Cecil for a guy who solves algebraic problems to go to sleep, your pretty lame at simple math. Even tho the age difference isn't that large, it explains why your a punk throwin stones. Sorry for the slow response but these old eyes miss some of the posts.

Bite me Bobby!

Nearly every morning there's 2 GBH's at each end of the pond but they fly off as soon as I approach.

But over the past 2 weeks, the one's showing up are white and not nearly as shy (Great White Heron? or Egret?) but just as damaging from the spear marks on my fish

But they don't like bottle rockets (screaming with report), which also works on geese, and much cheaper than lead. And luckily I have a good supply left over.

Seems to work for me and kinda fun to try to hit 'em

We are getting what is probably those same white birds here. Look like the GBH (from a distance at least) but maybe just slightly smaller.

Shotgun scares them off but I like the idea of the bottle rockets. Pretty sure it is illegal to shoot bottle rockets off here in Kansas, but about everything is illegal any more. There is probably something illegal about me taking a wiz out in my field but do it anyway.

Look up cattle egret (Bubulcus ibis) and see if it's the same white bird that you guys are seeing.

At least in my case, these are a lot bigger than the cattle egrets. We get those too, but this is a BIG white bird. Leg length and size comparable to a GBH. Maybe as large or just slightly smaller.

Do you get white herons? We get snowy egrets, but they are a bit smaller.

I am surprised that they are flightless and have little ones now. Here they just finished pairing up last week. No little ones yet.

Today it out first good day of heat. Expecting 30C today with the humidity. yaaaa.

Cheers Don.

snrub, I wonder if you're seeing great white egrets? Ours are much harder to move than the blue herons. The egrets will just jump from tree to tree when I shoot in their direction(warning shot only, as they're a protected species), and I'll literally have to chase them tree by tree off the property. Our blue herons will leave when they hear our Mule start. They know what's coming next.

Our blue herons and egrets seem to be most active at dusk and dawn when the water's calmer and the sun is lower.

Carolynn says she thinks they are the great white egrets. We do not have quite that much trouble getting them moving but they are harder than the GBH. Like you said, the GBH see us heading their way or hear the 4 wheeler start and they leave.

Usually we run them off the big pond behind the house and they pick up and move across the little creek to our old pond. Although not crazy about them being there, I don't mind them at the old pond as much.