northeast-flora-and-fauna

Canada Geese have a wide range of behaviors towards people. Some (possibly migrant) Canada Geese will fly away as readily as most other waterfowl. Many seem to cautiously walk or swim away, sort of the way you might if you saw a bear approaching you. And some of them have clearly been around humans a lot and aren't all that impressed with the danger we present [1]. This particular goose didn't flee but seemed to exhibit an air of confidence standing on its log. Perhaps it surmised that I was extremely unwilling to risk falling into near-freezing water with an approach? I need to use "it" to describe my goose friend since Canada Geese are essentially sexually monomorphic. March 6, 2023 at the Raritan Water Power Canal Photo 267703395, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) [1] It's discouraged these days, but I'm sure some people feed the geese, making our presence a somewhat welcome sight.

For Mother's Day , here's a Canada Goose family I met last week at Lord Stirling Park. Technically I can't be sure the mother was in this picture - there was a 3rd adult Canada Goose that wasn't in the picture - but there's a 2/3 chance at least 1 of these was a mother goose [1]. My impression is that geese are considered to be pretty good parents. Compared to ducks, they tend to have smaller broods but devote more time and energy into raising them. And overall they seem to be doing a good job; our Canada Goose population has been rising steadily since the mid-60s [2]. May 12, 2023 at Lord Stirling Park [1] Finding a mother goose is also harder since Canada Geese are not sexually dimorphic ; males and females are phenotypically very similar, or sexually monomorphic. [2] They might be doing a little too well. Just the volume of their bodily waste probably has negative consequences in high population areas.