The status of the Canada Goose has diminished over the past century. One of North America’s most recognizable birds, the species was revered by early naturalists as a symbol of the wild north, and was often described with the greatest of admiration. The passage of migratory flocks, honking loudly overhead in their V-shaped formations, has always been a much-anticipated sign of the changing of the seasons, observed with awe by generation after generation. Today, however, with numbers at an all-time high, the Canada Goose is generally regarded far less romantically. As their range has expanded in recent decades, the migratory urge has been greatly lessened within many populations, and lost completely in others. They have even come to be perceived as pests within certain communities, where they are attracted to public parks, golf courses, lawns, and waterways.

While the majority of Canada Geese still breed across northern Canada and Alaska, their range has expanded dramatically over the past century. Thanks to various reintroduction programs, coupled with the species’ natural adaptability, they are currently found breeding in every state and province of North America. Outside of continental North America, they breed in western Greenland. The Canada Goose has been successfully introduced around the globe, with populations established throughout Europe, in Asia, and as far away as New Zealand.

 

A legend for the range map to the right can be found here.

 

Efforts to reintroduce Canada Geese, particularly in the Midwest and Northeast, have been overwhelmingly successful. Reintroduction efforts began several decades ago, with a goal of re-establishing one particular subspecies, the “Giant” Canada Goose (Branta canadensis maxima), which was feared to be extinct for many years prior to its “rediscovery” in the early 1960s. Over the ensuing years, this and other subspecies have become common to abundant breeders in a wide variety of habitats from coast to coast. Fond of parks and manicured lawns—a trait that, for better or worse, they happen to share with humans—they now breed in regions where they were formerly noted only in migration. They also breed far south of their traditional range, and even occur locally in parts of the arid American Southwest. Indeed, Canada Geese can now be found just about anywhere in North America where suitable habitat is available.

 

An explanation of the Annual Indices graph displayed to the right can be found here.

The current status of the Canada Goose is one of the great success stories in the history of North American wildlife management. Issues today, in fact, generally involve controlling, rather than fostering, their burgeoning numbers. Canada Geese and humans come into conflict in two major arenas. In agricultural areas, flocks are often seen as pests, and can overgraze grasslands and grain fields. In urban and suburban communities, Canada Geese have become an occasional nuisance, and can even pose a potential public health risk by polluting water sources. In some regions, Canada Geese are kept in captivity as farm animals; escaped or released barnyard birds contribute to range expansion, and further complicate management plans for the species. Wildlife managers currently employ a wide variety of measures, both lethal and non-lethal, in their efforts to control various populations. Hunting regulations are constantly being reviewed in many areas; up to 2.5 million Canada Geese are taken annually in North America. Non-lethal control measures include relocation, addling, or oiling of eggs to prevent hatching, and landscape manipulation to discourage nesting.

 

A complicating factor in certain Canada Goose management plans is the peculiar fact that there are at least seven subspecies, according to most ornithologists—and some subspecies are considered threatened. There are also four subspecies of the very similar Cackling Goose, which, until 2004, was considered to be a smaller race of Canada Goose, rather than a distinct species. Cackling Geese commonly mix with migrant and wintering flocks of Canada Geese in certain regions. Of this combined total of 11 subspecies, some are far less common than others, and all have individual conservation priorities. Management of this group is rarely simple, often controversial, and represents a continuing challenge for wildlife managers!

 

For actions you can take, including Audubon activities, please visit our resources page.

Ducks Unlimited maintains important information on many current issues affecting North American waterfowl.

Visit our resources page for more information about this species.

Bent, Arthur Cleveland. 1962. Life Histories of North American Wild Fowl: Part One. Dover Publications, Inc., New York.

 

Coluccy, John. “Understanding Waterfowl – Resident Canadas” Ducks Unlimited. April 2006.

 

Kortright, Francis H. 1943. The Ducks, Geese and Swans of North America. The American Wildlife Institute, Washington D.C.

 

Mowbray, T. B., C. R. Ely, J. S. Sedinger, and R. E. Trost. 2002. Canada Goose (Branta canadensis). In The Birds of North America, No. 682 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Birds of North America, Inc., Philadelphia, PA.

 

Sibley, David Allen. Identification of Canada and Cackling Goose. Oct 2004.