The Overpopulation of the Snow Goose in North America
Abstract
The purpose of this paper is to explore available research on the overpopulation of the Snow Goose on the North American continent. The snow goose has been rising in population since the middle of the century and has been escalating so much it is destroying their natural habitat. Wildlife managers have just recently begun to implement strategies to combat this problem. Mainly through the use of hunters the managers are trying to curb the population growth.
Introduction
There are three main species of Snow Goose of primary concern. The Lesser Snow Goose (LSGO) is the must abundant and at the same time most troublesome. Ross’ Goose (ROGO) is very similar to the Lesser and can only be distinguished by close observation. Both the Lesser and the Ross nest in salt marshes along Hudson Bay and then migrate down to the gulf coast states such as Texas and Louisiana. Their populations number in the millions. The third sub species is the Greater Snow Goose. They nest in the same marshes as the others except they migrate down the Atlantic Coast into the Carolinas and that vicinity. All three species have exploded in numbers since the 1950’s. Researchers have done a lot of study on the numbers and the degradation but may need to do more studies on the impact to other species and look for other options to control the populations.
Population Trends
The numbers of all "light" colored geese has been on the rise since data was first collected. The Lesser Snow Goose (LSGO) has drastically increased in number since data was first taken. Numbers range from around 800,000 in 1969 to as many as 6 million in 1996 (CWS 1999). While the Greater Snow Goose (GSGO) has risen in numbers from a few thousand to almost 500,000 (CWS 1999). This brief article did not provide much insight into actual numbers. Abraham and Jeffries in their report dig deeper and provide more significant and detailed population counts. Their numbers add in the Mid-winter index, which is the number of geese counted during mid-winter and referred to as MWI. Their numbers also have a count for Ross’ Goose (ROGO) which primarily flies with the (LSGO) and is very hard to distinguish (Abraham and Jeffries 1998). They too suggest the LSGO population to be aro...
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...s will need to kill over 900,000 geese a year for over a decade to make any kind of dent in the population (Hodge 1999). Some are skeptical that hunters can take that many birds to begin with, let alone the fact that to many that seems like a merciless slaughter of innocent animals.
Conclusion
It appears that one thing is very clear… there is an overpopulation of Snow Geese on the North American Continent. The situation is almost out of hand and something needs to be done fast. Although there has enough research on the fact that there are simply to many geese there really has not been enough on the impacts to other species, and what is the best way to take care of the problem. Both the US and the Canadian government seem to be on the right path to controlling this problem that humans have created. But more needs to be done. There just simply isn’t enough hunters around to take the proper amount of birds in a sporting manner. Wildlife managers are going to have to step in and take more radical measure to control this before its too late and we have lost all the habitat for the geese and all other habitants of the salt marshes of the Hudson Bay area.
Isle Royal is located fifty-six miles north of Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula. It is the largest wilderness area in Michigan (USNPS, 2014). The island is surrounded by Lake Superior, which creates a cooler temperature. This results in arctic plant species growth on the island. There are only eighteen mammal species present on the island because most mammals cannot make the trip across the frozen great lake (USNPS, 2014). The need for an ice bridge is not the only environmental factor that is stopping the migration of animals; there is also the severe cold, and also wind and fog (Vucetich, 2012). Some species such as caribou and coyote have found the island to be too intense and have gone extinct (Vucetich, 2012). Due to the harsh weather and isolation of the island, humans have never regularly lived on the island (Vucetich, 2012). Some of species that are present such as the red squirrel are becoming their own subspecies due to its separation from the mainland (USNPS, 2014). The isolation of Isle Royal is what makes it a great place to conduct research, it has very low human interaction and the species that are on the island will have been and continue to be isolated from the mainland.
Ever since 1973, when the Endangered Species Act came into being, conservationists and private landowners have been debating over whether to preserve the habitats of many endangered species found in unprotected areas (Ligon et al, 1986). Increasing levels of human development has led to the cutting of old-growth forests and construction of roads and other physical barriers to wildlife. These activities have greatly contributed to the fragmentation of wildlife habitat, which has had detrimental effects on the population structure and survivorship of the affected area’s indigenous species. One species that has been affected by habitat fragmentation is the red-cockaded woodpecker (Picoides borealis), a nonmigratory bird with a home range covering most of the southeastern United States (Roise et al, 1990). Habitat fragmentation has led to the loss of genetic variability, nesting sites, and suitable population sizes to support cooperative breeding requirements. These factors have been responsible for the precipitous decline of the red-cockaded woodpecker. Because the red-cockaded woodpecker provides important ecological and economic benefits to both humans and the environment, we should strongly consider enacting a conservation plan for this species.
The Hudson Plains ecozone, in northern Ontario and parts of Manitoba and Quebec, is an area of wetlands. The climate is generally cool. The northern part of the ecozone is full of shrubs, but no trees, and areas farther south contain forests. Wet have vegetation such as moss and lichen and also some trees like willow, tamarack and black spruce. More northern, drier locations have vegetation consisting of many shrubs such as crowberry and blueberry. In the summer, the wetlands of the Hudson Plains attract millions of migratory birds, such as snow geese, Canada geese and king eider ducks. Mammals which can be found here include moose and black bear, but small mammals such as muskrats and weasels are more common.
Every day many species are slowly becoming either endangered or extinct and recently an endangered bird species called piping plovers, started nesting on Revere Beach. What would seem as a miraculous discovery, many are averse to their new inhabitants on the beach. Many Revere residents are complaining because the piping plovers now occupy parts of “their” beach. But in the article “Revere Beach should welcome the piping plover” The Editorial Board believes that the presence of the piping plover could be greatly beneficial to the city of Revere and I certainly agree. What led me to select this particular article is my concern for the many endangered species in the world like the piping plover. Human hands have led many species to become endangered
The author provides information describing the deer population in parts of New Jersey; yet, he does not include any data regarding the population in the rest of the United States, nor does he include any sources of where this information was obtained. A reader may be more
Wild Geese-- a poem by Mary Oliver. 1 May 2009. Youtube. 2 Sep. 2010. .
Deer overpopulation is a controversial topic. Some believe that deer overpopulation is not a real problem. Some may also believe the high numbers that studies show, is a scheme to give hunters an excuse to hunt without reason. The truth is that deer overpopulation is a true issue. Deer, especially the eastern whitetail deer population in these modern times, is out of control. “There are an estimated 30 million whitetail deer in the United States today. Under optimal conditions, whitetail deer populations will double every two years”(Rooney). As the numbers of whitetail deer rise, the land for them to live on decreases. This may lead to deer walking on roads and causing accidents.
White tailed deer are the largest game animal in North America. This is due to their over abundance and annoyance to farmers. An average of 300000 deer are hunted down each year. A tragedy has been another 3000 are hit by cars every year. Many human efforts have been made to prevent these accidents, such as fencing and deer repellents near freeways, but many seem to think that hunting and controlling the population is the best way.
Conservationists urged hunters to kill bucks instead of doing so. Because of these precautions, by the 1940s, 30 states in the United States had deer herds large enough to starve themselves (4). Populations of the white-tailed deer have increased in great numbers. These will increase if the death rate is low and the food supply is high. A single doe can reproduce every year until they die (7).
Back in 1904, There was a guy named Jack Miner that started a Migratory Waterfowl Refuge. This was a place for ducks to migrate. It was located in Kingsville, Ontario, Canada. In 1931, It was established in the United states, and in 1936, In canada to continue the legacy of Jack Miner. The jack Miner foundation was one of the most popular migration places for ducks. When spring came here in the United States, The ducks would all go back up north to canada to this Refuge. (“The Jack Miner Migratory Bird
8. Taylor, Dan. 1998. Audubon Society Inspired to Action by Bird Die -offs . 17 Jan. 1998 . E-mail . Available bkus@sunstroke.sdsu.edu
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While exploring the Gulf of Maine Exhibit at the aquarium, I was surprised that many of the species found throughout New England’s coast are becoming increasingly vulnerable to climate change. One species that was emphasized in the exhibit is the piper plover, a small bird that lives along vegetated coastlines. As coastal birds, piper plovers require a large habitat near the shore, however, this habitat is quickly diminishing due to rising sea levels. A study conducted by University of Massachusetts-Amherst revealed that over the next century, piper plover migratory habitats in Long Island will have decreased by 5-12% (Seavey et al). The diminished habitat gives Piper Plovers less space to breed, causing some populations to migrate further
American Crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) are a species of bird found in the family Corvidae, a family that also includes magpies, nutcrackers, and jays (Eastman, 1997). According Eastman’s book Birds of Forest, Yard, and Thicket, there are around forty-two Corvus species, and most of them live in the Northern Hemisphere (1997). American Crows in the United States usually do not migrate, but they do migrate in Canada. Not all American Crows migrate, but they are social birds who form wintertime flocks that sometimes reach over 200,000 birds (Burton et al., 2010).
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