Canada Geese: Taking Care Of Each Other
By Noemi Keller
By Noemi Keller
This spring, the Canada geese are back. If you have any water in your neighborhood and a field that is big enough for geese, then you probably have seen them. Sometimes they will honk loudly, so you might be able to hear them from your house.
Some geese have already laid eggs. My family and I know two families of geese who have already had goslings. There are ten goslings altogether (one is at a rehab center and probably won’t come back to his original family), and they are all very cute. They are yellow with a dark back and have very large wings, though they cannot fly. The goslings are curious, and some of them will wander off a little bit in their curiosity. One of the families of geese we know are pretty relaxed about humans, and don’t hiss at them very often, but since they had goslings, they are more alert, and won’t let humans get near them.
The mothers were in the nest for about 4 weeks. One of the female geese would leave the nest to go eat with her mate. Before she left the nest, she would put down a layer of feathers (from her own body) to keep the goslings inside the eggs warm. The two male geese we know still ate when their mate was in the nest. When the eggs hatched, the goslings stayed in the nest for 1 day (which is normal to do).
One of the jobs of a male goose is to protect his mate and goslings (if the goslings have arrived yet). Male geese are called “ganders”. You might be wondering how ganders scare off other geese. The goose will either swim or fly to the geese/goose he wants to scare off. If he is swimming, he will bend his neck toward his target, and once he reaches his target he will hiss. Then he will chase the other geese/goose off his territory. One of the male geese we know did it very often, defending the territory. He often was able to scare off the other geese, but they would just come back another day.
The first set of goslings were born on Wednesday, April 28 and the second set were born on Monday, May 3. Our family doesn’t know if that is the exact date, but we believe that this is the right date.
Some very mean ganders will steal goslings from families of geese who they think are incapable of taking care of goslings. On Wednesday, May 5, my family saw something odd. One of the families of geese, the family with five goslings now only had four, and the family with four goslings now had five. One of the goslings was tiny compared to the others, and he looked somewhat lost. When the family that now had five goslings swam into the water and went past the family with four goslings now, the mother with now only four goslings made angry motions with her neck.
Geese are very interesting creatures that you can usually find around your neighborhood. They are loving and protective of their mates and babies. My family and I like watching geese, what about you? Do you like geese? Are you interested in them?
Image
All About Birds - Canada Goose:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Canada_Goose/media-browser/59953191
Some geese have already laid eggs. My family and I know two families of geese who have already had goslings. There are ten goslings altogether (one is at a rehab center and probably won’t come back to his original family), and they are all very cute. They are yellow with a dark back and have very large wings, though they cannot fly. The goslings are curious, and some of them will wander off a little bit in their curiosity. One of the families of geese we know are pretty relaxed about humans, and don’t hiss at them very often, but since they had goslings, they are more alert, and won’t let humans get near them.
The mothers were in the nest for about 4 weeks. One of the female geese would leave the nest to go eat with her mate. Before she left the nest, she would put down a layer of feathers (from her own body) to keep the goslings inside the eggs warm. The two male geese we know still ate when their mate was in the nest. When the eggs hatched, the goslings stayed in the nest for 1 day (which is normal to do).
One of the jobs of a male goose is to protect his mate and goslings (if the goslings have arrived yet). Male geese are called “ganders”. You might be wondering how ganders scare off other geese. The goose will either swim or fly to the geese/goose he wants to scare off. If he is swimming, he will bend his neck toward his target, and once he reaches his target he will hiss. Then he will chase the other geese/goose off his territory. One of the male geese we know did it very often, defending the territory. He often was able to scare off the other geese, but they would just come back another day.
The first set of goslings were born on Wednesday, April 28 and the second set were born on Monday, May 3. Our family doesn’t know if that is the exact date, but we believe that this is the right date.
Some very mean ganders will steal goslings from families of geese who they think are incapable of taking care of goslings. On Wednesday, May 5, my family saw something odd. One of the families of geese, the family with five goslings now only had four, and the family with four goslings now had five. One of the goslings was tiny compared to the others, and he looked somewhat lost. When the family that now had five goslings swam into the water and went past the family with four goslings now, the mother with now only four goslings made angry motions with her neck.
Geese are very interesting creatures that you can usually find around your neighborhood. They are loving and protective of their mates and babies. My family and I like watching geese, what about you? Do you like geese? Are you interested in them?
Image
All About Birds - Canada Goose:
https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Canada_Goose/media-browser/59953191