Species

Canada goose

Branta canadensis

The big black-necked goose with the white chinstrap, now a year-round resident on Georgia's lakes and lawns.

Photo Unknown photographer (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC0 1.0 (opens in a new tab)

At a glance

Size: About 76 to 110 cm long; wingspan up to 1.8 m
Weight: About 3 to 6.5 kg
Habitat: Lakes, ponds, rivers, parks, golf courses and fields
Diet: Grasses, shoots, seeds, grain and aquatic plants
In Georgia: Common all year; most are resident birds rather than migrants
Voice: A deep, honking "ah-honk"
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: Black head and neck with a white chinstrap; brown-grey body; pale breast; black tail with a white band above it
Told apart from: Cackling goose, a rare winter visitor, which is much smaller with a short neck and stubby bill
Told apart from: Brant, a rare coastal visitor, which has no white chinstrap
Where to look: Almost any lake or park pond, and mowed grass beside water

Behaviour

Canada geese graze on short grass, which is why lawns and golf courses beside water suit them so well. Pairs usually stay together for life, and both parents guard the goslings fiercely, hissing and charging at people and dogs that come close.

In summer adults moult all their flight feathers at once and cannot fly for about six weeks; during that time they stay close to water.

Why they matter

Most of Georgia's Canada geese descend from birds released in the twentieth century to restore populations, and they now breed wherever there is water and grass. Their grazing and droppings shape the edges of ponds and lakes, and their goslings feed foxes, hawks, snapping turtles and alligators.

A goose family on a lawn is also one of the easiest places to watch cooperative parenting: parents take turns feeding and watching, and several families often merge their goslings into a single guarded group.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A bowl of plants and down on the ground near water, often on an island or bank
Eggs — Usually four to seven
Incubation — About 25 to 30 days, by the female while the male stands guard
Goslings — Leave the nest within a day; feed themselves, guarded by both parents
Flight — At about nine weeks old
Family — Young stay with their parents through their first winter
Lifespan — Often 10 to 24 years in the wild

Living around people

Geese defending a nest or goslings will hiss and charge; backing away slowly ends it.
Goslings on a road or path are following their parents; waiting for the family to cross is enough.
Bread fills geese without nourishing them and gathers flocks that foul lawns and water.
Tall grass or plantings along a pond's edge make a lawn far less attractive to geese than any scaring device.
Fishing line and hooks tangle legs and bills and should never be left at the water's edge.

Misconceptions

A gosling alone for a moment is orphaned. Goose parents rarely stray far; wait at a distance before doing anything.
Canada geese mate for life, so a widowed goose will die of grief. Pairs are long-lasting, but a goose that loses its mate usually pairs again.
All Canada geese migrate. Most in Georgia live here all year.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	Pairs forming and defending territories	Pairs choose nest sites	Egg laying and incubation	Goslings hatch; families on the water	Goslings growing; parents very protective	Adults moulting and flightless for several weeks	Young learning to fly	Families flying together	Flocks gather on lakes and fields	Flocks feeding; a few northern migrants arrive	Flocks on reservoirs	Flocks; some pairs already defending sites

Where it lives

Recorded in 63 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

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