At Philadelphia Metro Wildlife Center, we don’t really have ‘favorite” animals, but we do have a soft spot for Canada Geese. Right now, if you see any geese on your short trips outside, you might see some interesting behavior. A few months ago, the Canada Geese were in flocks, flying overhead in their famous V formations. But at this time of year, Canada Geese are pulling away from the flocks and pairing up in preparation for mating and raising young. Once old couples reunite (yes, they mate for life) and young geese,newly mature, find partners for the first time (they breed for the first time when they are about 3-4 years old), they will start the process of finding and then defending their territories. Established couples will return to the same nest site year after year; new couples will have to find a spot and defend it. Keep your eyes out for geese. Are you seeing couples, or flocks? If you see a flock, it could be a group of “teenagers”, too young to breed this year. If you see a couple, they might be old hands at this, or it might be their first time.
As most people know, Canada geese are GREAT parents. Unlike with Mallard ducks, both Canada goose parents take an active role in rearing the young. When you hear reports of an “aggressive” goose, that’s usually dad, hissing and trying to act threatening to protect his family - either his partner on the nest, or his group of goslings. You’d do the same if you perceived a threat against your children! Geese also do another interesting behavior - once the goslings hatch, parents lead them to water. Often that’s at a spot with many other goose families with kids..in some ways, it’s a communal child-rearing strategy, called a creche. There is strength in numbers! Sometimes a gosling will swim away and accidentally end up with the wrong family, but the parents will usually accept the their non-related gosling and protect him too.
Here’s a cool photo of some young geese we raised in a past year, at the end of the summer when they were grown up and ready for release
