Canada Goose question

[furman_ny]

To anyone who may have some answers, I have been told by several people that they read somewhere in newspapers or hunting magazines that N.Y. state D.E.C. is proposing to cut the goose population by half or more, using baited nets to capture them and paying a landfill to euthanize and bury them. Any truth to this?  I hunt geese some, not nearly as much as I used to, have a hard time finding a way to cook them to familys liking, but I take a few in early season and a few more in late season each year. I would take more if the best time to hunt them wasnt during all other open seasons, trule enjoy hunting them but rather chase deer, turkeys, or do some trapping. Anyways, this to me sounds like a total waste of money that the state supposedly doesnt have much of, why wouldnt they lengthen seasons, expand bag limits, take out the plugs, allow electronic calls, anything that would allow the guys who do hunt them hard to take more instead of just killing and burying them?  Basically wasting them. They could even allow them to be hunted year round, would be better than wasting them needlessly in my opinion. Any replies welcome, thanks in advance.

[Doewhacker]

Let me first say I now nothing about goose hunting but... We spent last week up by Lake Placid camping and the local news had a story on this, I do not understand why even knowing their reasons. They were talking about the danger to jets hitting them while flying, after that palne went down in the Hudson from a goose strike this all came about. The thing is up there as far as I know there aren't any air ports so why kill off geese when they pose no threat? I agree with you, they should at least look at lengthing seasons or expanding bag limits first. Its one of those things that make you scratch your head and say what?

[Larry]

there's alot of info. at the FINGER LAKES & WESTERN NEW YORK WATERFOWL ASSOCIATION meeting on AUG 15th at 10am.

    [move]FL&WNYWA meeting @ DEC HQ Bldg on Rt.5, in Avon; Officers & Directors @ 8:30 AM; General Meeting @ 10:00 AM[/move]

[thetrick]

The geese that you are referring to are the geese that are unhuntable in populated state parks, play grounds, lakes, sport complexes, golf courses, etc... they are to close to urban or suburban areas to hunt.  These are not geese in the Atlantic Flyway, they are all nuisance local geese that create problems in such areas.

[furman_ny]

I realize they would focus on areas where hunting is not allowed, but I see it here every year, early season open Sept.1, people, myself included, take some of the birds where hunting is allowed, then most retreat to join other geese in those areas you speak of, here that is mostly golf courses and posted land where owners deny all requests to hunt them, BUT, as the season nears a close on Sept.25 here, the weather is starting to cool dramatically and you see many of those geese who have done nothing but loaf around on golf courses and shopping malls in the air headed to farmers crop fields, where most of the hunting is done. A field you set up in early season and had one flock of 10 honkers come into, suddenly has 100's or thousands of geese working it, but season closes on 25th, reopens in late October, when 90 percent, myself included, are pursuing other game. For sure, serious waterfowl guys are out there then, but the bag limits have been lowered by then and their are way less serious goose guys than deer guys for sure. Eventually those small pond and food areas on golf courses and parks freeze up, and many if not all of those same geese are forced to move, and forced to feed in crop fields, where they probably can be hunted in most places., most state parks do not grow corn fields to my knowledge. All I am saying is before they go to the extremes of killing them and throwing em in a hole, why not give hunters that pay money and enjoy hunting them, every chance to do the job for them, I have run across many a honker hunter, never saw one shoot a goose and just toss it in the weeds, which is what they basically are going to do. Your right, they are problem geese in public parks etc., but if they kill them off it will undoubtedly shorten all resident early seasons if not close them, and probably lessen bag limits across the board in all seasons. Heck, Id rather see a kid shooting them in July and taking them home to eat than knowing their just being buried somewhere, give the guys with the guns a chance first. We dont need any more reasons for people to stop hunting, you shorten seasons and cut bag limits, you can be sure less licenses and waterfowl stamps will be bought.

[thetrick]

It wasn't long ago that there wasn't an early season... as a traditional waterfowler early season it is no big deal to me.  They will never kill all these geese off they have been doing it for a long time.  Shooting geese in 80 degree heat is not my bag... bring on the migrators something w/ a challange.  The reason the seasons in Oct., Nov., and Dec. have a more regulated bag limit is that these geese pass threw Canada all the way to DelMarVa.  They get extreme hunting pressure in the Alantic Flyway w/ only so many geese to go around. 

Some counties in downstate and southerntier have a March season...

[furman_ny]

Trick, I do understand why bag limits are less during migration time, which by the way we see very little of in these parts, Ive been hunting them for 25 years or so,and believe me, not a big fan of hunting in the heat either. We have a 3 part season here, and am gonna say only the middle part has any chance of taking migrators, late season here only 2 weeks long, done by early/mid January, when definitely all geese being hunted are these local problem birds. Just hoping they give hunters every chance to fix the problem before killin off a bunch of them.By the way, still confused about the lengthy Snow goose season we have here, spend about every day in the outdoors from Sept.-March, maybe see two flocks a year go over, never have even seen a snow while waterfowl hunting, maybe up by the Great Lakes more?

[fasteddie]

Trick, I do understand why bag limits are less during migration time, which by the way we see very little of in these parts, Ive been hunting them for 25 years or so,and believe me, not a big fan of hunting in the heat either. We have a 3 part season here, and am gonna say only the middle part has any chance of taking migrators, late season here only 2 weeks long, done by early/mid January, when definitely all geese being hunted are these local problem birds. Just hoping they give hunters every chance to fix the problem before killin off a bunch of them.By the way, still confused about the lengthy Snow goose season we have here, spend about every day in the outdoors from Sept.-March, maybe see two flocks a year go over, never have even seen a snow while waterfowl hunting, maybe up by the Great Lakes more?

Their "migration time" ????????? THe damned things don't migrate anymore ! http://www.downsouthhuntingforums.com/images/smiles/pissed.gif[/img]...http://www.downsouthhuntingforums.com/images/smiles/pissed.gif[/img]...http://www.downsouthhuntingforums.com/images/smiles/pissed.gif[/img]

[capt_terry]

Yes, they do still migrate,  that is the migratory population does. The local nuesence geese do not. They did just such a kill off as desccribed in the original post around the NY city airports and Westchester county parks a few years ago after the airliner was forced down into the Hudson River. These were the very same geese we were hunting of the coast of Westchester. I can't say as that I blame them though. When the geese get so thick they become a threat to human safety something has to be done. We were shooting a lot of geese prior to that but didn't put a dnet in the population. Hunters in that area don't shoot enough to offset the young of the year. 

[Doc]

I kind of agree with Furman. Turn the local hunters loose in a "no holds barred" fashion and make the season as long as is necessary to get the job done. No rules, no seasons, no bag limits, and then if there are any left over, turn the professional guns loose on them. And even then, you might want to design a program like our venison donation program only make it for goose meat instead of venison. Whatever....it sure seems this the shoot and bury program should be a last resort.

Doc

[CNYlungbuster]

While unplugging guns and extending season may work, I doubt they would.  As capt terry eluded to these are birds in unhuntable situations and a lot of times not enough hunters to keep up even if they were allowed to hunt them.  Another reason they wouldn't be able to extend the seasons is that they are a migratory bird and after the early season migrators and locals are all mixed together so how could we only shoot the locals while leaving the migrators for the rest of the atlantic flyway to shoot?  Thats the reason for the early seson because the birds havn't started migrating yet and the STATE puts liberal limits to reduce the local population.  Once those birds start moving south it goes the Federal govt. (reason for having to buy a stamp at a post office). Untill we see a situation like there is with snow geese I don't see the federal govt making the regular season limits more liberal anytime soon.

I share your sentiments about burying the birds though theres no reason for them to be wasted.  I think they should find some local butchers and do something along the lines of the venison dontaion program like Doc mentioned.

CNY

[Larry]

i you want to hammer geese find the snow's

[JGaruti3]

I know that NYC euthanized around 1/4 million birds that live here in the bay areas this year alone after the plane went down in the Hudson.  Pretty ridiculous in my opinion.  They should allow for more lax hunting regulations...hell if NYC would let me go to the end of the road where the bay is I could kill 20 a day easily!

[capt_terry]

You could kill 20 a day for three or four days then they just wouldn't come there anymore. But, there would still be thousands in the bay.