Urban Waterfowl Q&A

by Kathy Andrews Wright | August 3, 2020 | Wildlife

A group of gray and black Canada geese cross a pathway in front of some park-going humans. Trees and mowed grass is in the background.

Film Date:

July 16, 2020

Speakers:

Ben Williams from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources

Craig Pullins from Illinois Wildlife Services

Produced by:

Laura Kammin

Kathy Andrews Wright

Edited by:

Sarah Marjanovic

Questions received in advance of the conversation are listed below, with the time noted should you desire to fast-forward to a topic of interest.

0:36 Ben Williams overview of position with Illinois Department of Natural Resources

2:23 Craig Pullins overview of position with Illinois Wildlife Services

4:26 Regarding the number Canada geese around lakes in subdivision and the mess they make: What can I do to get rid of them?

Options:

5:43 Harassment (such as clap hands, lasers, pyrotechnics, dogs [requires permit])
6:50 Exclusion (such as fencing, barriers)
8:07 Habitat Modification (such as cease feeding, construct steep banks, add rip rap, turn off fountains in winter, plant native shoreline vegetation)
9:45 Non-lethal Chemical Repellants
11:17 Legal Hunting
12:04 Egg and Nest Destruction Program (IDNR permit required)
13:20 Charity Hunt (IDNR permit required and Illinois Wildlife Services handles removal)

18:01 How long should a person wait to be sure a hen mallard has abandoned her backyard nest? Should a person try to rescue the eggs?

23:59 My daughter and I like feeding the ducks and geese at our local park, but I saw a Facebook post about “Angel Wing” which said that feeding bread to ducks and geese isn’t a good idea. What can we feed them that is healthy for them?

27:30 There is a duck nest in our backyard, but we aren’t anywhere near water. What should do we do when the ducklings hatch?

31:10 Wrap up comments from Craig Pullins

32:27 Wrap up comments from Ben Williams

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Kathy Andrews Wright retired from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources where she was editor of OutdoorIllinois magazine. She is currently the editor of OutdoorIllinois Journal.