This seems to be a big problem in several cities in California with waterways, including Foster City, Fremont, Sunnyvale, Mountain View, Oakland and Cupertino all looking for ways to keep the geese away.
Source: Mercury News
SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- They strut through grassy knolls, preen their feathers and bathe in Central Park’s water fountain, all while leaving behind piles of poop – some 176 pounds’ worth a day, to be exact.
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As the geese continue to populate Santa Clara, park officials worry about potential public hazards, such as the spread of avian diseases, “goose-visitor confrontations,” a lack of biodiversity and, of course, rampant droppings.According to a recent goose management plan drafted by the city, the 176 pounds of feces the geese drop at the park each day equate to about 5,280 pounds a month, or 63,360 pounds a year.
The egg-addling weapon Santa Clara now wants to employ to tackle the problem involves draining the lake’s geese-drawing fountain, planting dense sections of tall shrubbery where they can gather and removing the birds’ eggs from nests there.
The eggs can then either be coated with corn oil, punctured with a needle or shaken vigorously to kill the embryos. After that, they’re returned to the nest.
The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has issued a permit to addle the goose eggs, according to the city.
Apparently, egg adding is the more humane approach.
Matthew Dodder, executive director of the Santa Clara Valley Audubon Society, said while it may seem “a bit draconian at first,” egg addling is one of the more humane ways to control the geese population, better than euthanizing or capturing and redistributing them."
