Those Canada Geese

Fall has arrived and, with it, I can't help but notice the timely arrival of the Canada geese. They are everywhere, swimming in every river and lake for miles around, or grazing in the open fields. They fly in lopsided V formations at sunrise, and again at sunset, honking wildly as they search for a place to forage for food or spend the night. 

Canada geese, sometimes called Canadian geese, are common thoughout much of North America. Many of them breed in Canada, as their name suggests. Some flocks winter in southern Canada, but most travel further south to the US or northeastern Mexico. A good number spend the winter here in Nebraska.

They are large birds, with wingspans reaching from four to six feet. They mate for life, and can live from 10 to 24 years in the wild. Most flocks of geese migrate every spring and fall, at the rate of 40 to 70 miles per hour. With a favorable tail wind, Canada geese can fly as far as 1500 miles in a single day!

As you would expect, Canada geese eat aquatic plants and animals, but they spend much of their time on land, as well, eating whatever grass and grains they can find. The other day, my grandkids were excited to tell me all about the geese (and seagulls) that covered the field surrounding their house.

This time of year, when the trees are mostly bare, I love to watch the geese as I walk the path that skirts the North Platte River and the Riverside ponds. I find it interesting that they stay in their flocks even while they swim. Perhaps they follow the "safety in numbers" rule.

If I walk toward any geese as they stand on the shore, they always head for the water before I get too close.

When I stand on the shore, the geese don't waste any time swimming (or flying) away from me. 

When I was growing up in southeastern Nebraska, my whole family often accompanied Dad when he was hunting geese. Or, maybe it would be better to say that our whole family spent most Sunday afternoons together, taking a Sunday drive that usually turned into a hike. When ducks and geese were in season, Dad took his shotgun along.

I remember one foggy, November day, long ago, when the bitter, blustery wind turned the scattered snowflakes into icy darts; it was just too cold for much hiking. Dad's driving took us, eventually, to a reservoir, where other hunters were lining the reedy shores, ready to shoot their limit of Canada geese. Dad didn't have a hunting dog who could retrieve any downed geese from the icy water, so he had to plan his hunting strategy carefully to make sure none landed in the lake.

The rest of us waited in the car, thankful for the heater, while Dad took his shotgun to see if he could scare up some geese. He wasn't gone long. With just one shot, he harvested five airborne geese. There was only one problem: the bag limit was three.

You need to know two things: First, a shotgun shell is filled with lead pellets, which scatter after the gun is fired. Therefore, it is entirely possible to kill several flying birds with one shot. Second, Dad is generally a law-abiding hunter, but he also believes that wasting any game is just plain wrong.

So Dad had a dilemma. He didn't want to risk loading all five geese into the trunk, because the game warden was sure to be close by, checking for any such violation. If he had known any of the nearby hunters, Dad might have asked a friend to add his two extra geese to their bag, but he didn't know anyone well enough to ask someone to take his geese instead of shooting their own. So, he loaded three into the trunk, after hiding the other two under a bush, where he could find them later. Then we drove home.

Later that same day, Dad drove back to the reservoir by himself to pick up the extra geese.

The wetlands along the river path are off limits for hunters, but I am sure they can find several other areas, outside of town, where hunting is legal. The geese will be plentiful wherever they go.

Whether we liked it or not, my family always ate whatever game Dad shot. I didn't care much for wild duck or goose, but I ate it anyway. These days, though, the only "hunting" I do is with my camera. I don't have to worry about over-filling my limit. And I certainly don't need to look too hard to find the Canada geese, even though they always seem to be swimming away from me. 

Gooseprints in the sand prove that the geese were here--until I got too close.

And God said, “Let the water teem with living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the vault of the sky.” Genesis 1:20