Canada Goose Management
Programs to Reduce Damage and Conflicts with Canada Geese
Technical Guidance
Non-lethal Methods
Both the NCWRC and USDA-WS provide technical guidance to property owners to address nuisance resident Canada goose concerns. There are a variety of techniques available including: habitat modification, modification of human behavior, physical exclusion/deterrents, and hazing. Depending upon site location, severity of the issue, and consistent application of recommendations, non-lethal techniques can be very effective in many situations. Successful non-lethal techniques may move geese from areas of initial conflict, but relocated geese many times simply shift their offending behavior to another location.
Lethal Programs
Nest and Egg Depredation Order
Since 2007, landowners in North Carolina may register within a nationwide system administered by the USFWS to conduct resident Canada goose nest and egg destruction activities on their property. No state or federal permits or fees are required to participate; however, registration is through a web-based system only. Prior to the current nest and egg registration system, landowners had to obtain a permit for this activity from USFWS. During the first two years of the current program, registrants in North Carolina reported the destruction of 1,625 nests. The nest destruction program serves dual purposes in that it provides a means to reduce population size or at least slow/stop population increases while providing a method to disperse nuisance nesting geese at specific sites.
Agricultural Depredation Order
This federal depredation order authorizes state wildlife agencies to allow landowners actively engaged in commercial agriculture to conduct lethal control to depredating Canada 13 geese between May 1 and August 31, and destroy nests and eggs from March 1 through June 30. As a condition of state participation, annual reports summarizing the control activities are required. The NCWRC implemented this Depredation Order for the first time in spring 2011. During this first year, 10 landowners participated in the Depredation Order with 18 geese reported taken.
USDA-WS Trap and Euthanize Program
Since the early 2000’s, USDA-WS has implemented a capture and euthanize program across the state to directly reduce goose numbers at specific sites. For a fee, private and public 14 property owners may contract with USDA-WS for this service. Since 2003, over 2000 geese have been removed. This program is particularly useful in areas where human safety is of the utmost concern, where sport hunting opportunities are limited, or where discharge of firearms is prohibited.
Sport Hunting
Sport hunting as a tool to reduce local populations should be recommended when local laws allow. Currently, North Carolina has very liberal Canada goose hunting regulations throughout much of the state. However, sport hunting likely has little impact on those groups of Canada geese that spend the majority of their time in urbanized settings. Although hunting has the potential to reduce local and statewide populations of geese, it is not an effective tool to alleviate situations within urban/suburban areas or specific nuisance situations that occur outside of the hunting season.