Let us first take a look at some information about Canadian Geese scientifically known as Branta Canadensis to give us a better understanding of them so that we can really understand the ins and outs of hunting geese in Colorado. A lot of people believe that the goose is the most recognizable and most common waterfowl species in North America.
Larger geese are known as honkers or greaters while the smaller geese are known as cacklers or lessers and the males as ganders who look identical to the females but are usually larger in comparison. The larger geese can weigh up to 20 pounds and the smaller ones can weigh as small as 6 pounds. Canadian geese also have long black necks, a white patch on the side of the head and under their chin, black bills and feet, gray mixed with black bodies, whitish gray and brownish bellies, big wings and white feathers under their tails. This year goose hunting in Colorado we came across quite a few of the larger geese that had heads that made a fist look small.
You can always find geese in close proximity to water sources like reservoirs, lakes, ponds, gravel pits, streams, rivers and marshes. You will also find them in all our mad made areas like on the golf course, city parks, near airports and most likely in your back yard too. Prior to migration, geese will feed heavily and on most occurrences will spend about 12 hours each day feeding, they are also herbivores. They have teeth on the outsides of their bills called lamellae that they use to help them in cutting and tearing your bluegrass yard. Grass is of high preference for geese but they will eat pretty much all of Colorado's agriculture that is easily presented and they can eat around a pound a day. They have also been spotted putting down small fish and crustaceans with a normal diet consisting of grass, corn, wheat, aquatic plants, grains, beans, rice, berries and not to forget all the crackers and bread they put down those long necks at the local parks.
The nesting areas will have good visibility to impending dangers most of the time being next to open water and the geese will return to the same nesting area every year. Geese will have lifelong mates being monogamous but if one mate dies they can find another and sometimes they will remain single. Spring time is when mating begins and for the most part a goose will not mate before they are 2 years old. Females get choice of nesting location and will build the nest with grasses, leafs and vegetation that is surrounding and the male will defend the nest, eggs and territory. The eggs will be incubated by the female who will use her feather down on her chest to insulate and line the nest. There is an average of about 5 to 7 eggs in every nest and together they are called a clutch. It takes about a month to fully incubate the clutch, each egg takes around a day to be laid and the incubation will not be started until the complete clutch is laid.
The babies or goslings will take around 1-2 days to free themselves from their egg with an egg tooth that is on top of their bills. All of the eggs will have hatched in a day and within in 24 hours all of the goslings will take a dip in the water. When the mating and nesting stage is finished the adults will start a molting process every year where they will lose their outer wing feathers. The adult geese will become flightless during the molting process and they will get on the water to escape from predators and danger. Their outer wing feathers will be fully grown back when the goslings are ready to start flying by about 9 weeks of age.
During nesting the geese can be quite aggressive and protective and it is possible to catch this behavior on those funny videos where people get attacked when they get a little too close. It is easy to see that a goose might not be too happy when they start hissing and using their large wings as flapping weapons of mass feathering. Use of body movement is a large means of communication for the goose and it is very noticeable when they are spotted in parks and on the water where they chase and push each other around. They can make around thirteen different calls ranging from warning and contentment calls to very loud alarm and greeting calls to fast clucks and murmurs of geese that are feeding. Overall geese are extremely family orientated, gregarious animals and may also be some of the chattiest animals after us loud mouth humans, of course.
Aerodynamics must play a role in why you always see geese flying in v formations and diagonal lines. Geese are probably doing this for a reason in those long migrations and most likely to lower the drag from each other to use less energy and making long pushes possible. When migrating they can fly about 2 to 3 thousand miles in total range in a learned process. At this time geese will be located in all the states, Canada and even Mexico during one time or another. In summer they will be located mainly in northern parts North America particularly in Canada but when winter shows up the geese will travel south. 7 subspecies of Canadian geese have been recognized and 12 subspecies have been distinguished and these geese have shown up naturally in areas such as Northern Europe, Eastern Siberia, Eastern China and Japan. Throughout history they have also been introduced into various countries.
To say the least, there are a lot of geese and here in Colorado there are a lot of hunting opportunities available for the geese that reside here year round as well as for the ones that migrate through the state. The information on Canadian geese here by no means is exclusive but it is a great resource to get an idea of what these birds are like because learning how to hunt these birds successfully is a whole other story that goes on year round.
Larger geese are known as honkers or greaters while the smaller geese are known as cacklers or lessers and the males as ganders who look identical to the females but are usually larger in comparison. The larger geese can weigh up to 20 pounds and the smaller ones can weigh as small as 6 pounds. Canadian geese also have long black necks, a white patch on the side of the head and under their chin, black bills and feet, gray mixed with black bodies, whitish gray and brownish bellies, big wings and white feathers under their tails. This year goose hunting in Colorado we came across quite a few of the larger geese that had heads that made a fist look small.
You can always find geese in close proximity to water sources like reservoirs, lakes, ponds, gravel pits, streams, rivers and marshes. You will also find them in all our mad made areas like on the golf course, city parks, near airports and most likely in your back yard too. Prior to migration, geese will feed heavily and on most occurrences will spend about 12 hours each day feeding, they are also herbivores. They have teeth on the outsides of their bills called lamellae that they use to help them in cutting and tearing your bluegrass yard. Grass is of high preference for geese but they will eat pretty much all of Colorado's agriculture that is easily presented and they can eat around a pound a day. They have also been spotted putting down small fish and crustaceans with a normal diet consisting of grass, corn, wheat, aquatic plants, grains, beans, rice, berries and not to forget all the crackers and bread they put down those long necks at the local parks.
The nesting areas will have good visibility to impending dangers most of the time being next to open water and the geese will return to the same nesting area every year. Geese will have lifelong mates being monogamous but if one mate dies they can find another and sometimes they will remain single. Spring time is when mating begins and for the most part a goose will not mate before they are 2 years old. Females get choice of nesting location and will build the nest with grasses, leafs and vegetation that is surrounding and the male will defend the nest, eggs and territory. The eggs will be incubated by the female who will use her feather down on her chest to insulate and line the nest. There is an average of about 5 to 7 eggs in every nest and together they are called a clutch. It takes about a month to fully incubate the clutch, each egg takes around a day to be laid and the incubation will not be started until the complete clutch is laid.
The babies or goslings will take around 1-2 days to free themselves from their egg with an egg tooth that is on top of their bills. All of the eggs will have hatched in a day and within in 24 hours all of the goslings will take a dip in the water. When the mating and nesting stage is finished the adults will start a molting process every year where they will lose their outer wing feathers. The adult geese will become flightless during the molting process and they will get on the water to escape from predators and danger. Their outer wing feathers will be fully grown back when the goslings are ready to start flying by about 9 weeks of age.
During nesting the geese can be quite aggressive and protective and it is possible to catch this behavior on those funny videos where people get attacked when they get a little too close. It is easy to see that a goose might not be too happy when they start hissing and using their large wings as flapping weapons of mass feathering. Use of body movement is a large means of communication for the goose and it is very noticeable when they are spotted in parks and on the water where they chase and push each other around. They can make around thirteen different calls ranging from warning and contentment calls to very loud alarm and greeting calls to fast clucks and murmurs of geese that are feeding. Overall geese are extremely family orientated, gregarious animals and may also be some of the chattiest animals after us loud mouth humans, of course.
Aerodynamics must play a role in why you always see geese flying in v formations and diagonal lines. Geese are probably doing this for a reason in those long migrations and most likely to lower the drag from each other to use less energy and making long pushes possible. When migrating they can fly about 2 to 3 thousand miles in total range in a learned process. At this time geese will be located in all the states, Canada and even Mexico during one time or another. In summer they will be located mainly in northern parts North America particularly in Canada but when winter shows up the geese will travel south. 7 subspecies of Canadian geese have been recognized and 12 subspecies have been distinguished and these geese have shown up naturally in areas such as Northern Europe, Eastern Siberia, Eastern China and Japan. Throughout history they have also been introduced into various countries.
To say the least, there are a lot of geese and here in Colorado there are a lot of hunting opportunities available for the geese that reside here year round as well as for the ones that migrate through the state. The information on Canadian geese here by no means is exclusive but it is a great resource to get an idea of what these birds are like because learning how to hunt these birds successfully is a whole other story that goes on year round.
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