The Canada Goose - Five Facts

I walk on my lunch break, when my schedule and the weather permit. On a recent walk, I encountered dozens of Canada Geese. I had watched Alfred Hitchcock's classic movie The Birds the previous night. I was concerned about walking past the rather surly flock. Happily, I survived. I had seen the V-formations of geese flying south for several weeks. Curiosity about the large birds led to a little research.  

1) Canada Geese live year-round in Colorado, according to Colorado Parks & Wildlife. While many geese migrate, such as the flock I encountered, quite a few Canada Geese reside permanently in our state.  

2) The correct name is Canada Geese, not Canadian, according to National Geographic. 

3) The next time I walked, the geese were gone. They left behind large piles of droppings. According to the aforementioned National Geographic article, "Just 50 geese can produce two and a half tons of excrement in a year."

4) Both sources stated that the geese had been endangered at one point in history, but that the Canada Goose was a wildlife protection program success story. So much so that they can present a nuisance in urban areas and airports, and can damage crops. 


5) On an excursion with the grandkids to a local nature center this weekend, I learned that my teenage granddaughter's arms from fingertip to fingertip are the same breadth as that of the wing span of the Canada Goose. 

Sources:
http://cpw.state.co.us/learn/Pages/LivingwithWildlifeGoose.aspx

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/canada-goose/

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