The Canada Goose Population in Vilas Park

Questions

• What factors effect the geese population in Vilas Park?
• How can that information be used to help management?

Our Study

• We hypothesized that temperature and human population effected the distribution of geese in Vilas Park.
• The first step of our project was counting geese in different zones using a map and data sheet.
• In analyzing the data, we looked for trends in numbers of geese throughout the year, paying attention to changes in weather and human population.

Background Information On Giant Canada Geese

• Populations of Giant Canada geese have increased tremendously in recent years, with breeding populations in the United States exceeding 1 million.
• Giant Canada geese nesting in the U.S. usually only migrate short distances.
• These birds frequently come into contact with human beings in agricultural and urban settings, sometimes damaging property or impeding the interests of the humans with whom they cohabitate.
• Traditionally, a variety of methods, not all of them humane, have been used to control duck and geese populations.

Management Options

Short Term

• Hazing the geese
• Do not feed the ducks of the geese (ticketing those who do)
• Fencing
• Dog herding
• Noise making devices of scare devices

Long Term

• Habitat alteration (let vegetation grow tall along the shorelines)
• Sport hunting
• Sterilization to prevent reproduction
• Relocation (trap when molting because they cannot fly)
• Harvesting (after trapping birds, relocate juveniles, and kill adults to produce bird meat)

Implications Of Management Options In The Vilas Area
Possible Solutions

• We suggest moving the geese into one specific zone would be the best solution so that there could be more concentration on keeping the remaining parts of the park clean.
• Since the geese population is very high in the large area by the basketball courts, soccer fields, and tennis courts, we propose one option may be to try and move the geese into a single zone.
• Because geese like to have access to the water, growing vegetation along the shoreline would hinder the geese from being in that area.
• Another management option to control geese would be to display signs and possibly create a law that prohibits feeding geese in the park. We would concentrate on the Vilas Beach area and the entrance to the zoo.
• Moving the geese to zone 3 (the island) would be a good management option for controlling the geese because the area is the smallest, it is easy to clean, and it can be harvested.

Map of Study Zones in Vilas Park

Graph 1: Number Of Geese As A Function Of Air Temperature
This graph shows that the number of geese increase as the temperature increases. Geese are also rarely present when the temperature is below 30 degrees.

Graph 2: Seasonal Change In Number Of Geese And People
From this graph, it is clearly shown that the geese are not present at Vilas Park when the lake was frozen. When the water opened in late February, we noticed that geese began to come back.

Graph 3: Total Number Of Geese By Location
This graph shows that there are large amounts of geese in zone 2 and 3. However in zone 2, there is a high number of geese and people and the other zones reflect a higher number of people and a lower number of geese.

Graph 4: Canada Geese In Madison
This graph shows the count on geese the day after Christmas every year since 1962. It shows us that since 1990, the amount of geese has risen.