Image Credit: Okanagan Valley Goose Management
May 03, 2014 - 10:54 AM
New tactics will be used this year to try and control the introduced, non-migratory Canada goose population in the District of West Kelowna.
Trial techniques will be used along West Kelowna’s waterfront to frighten Canada geese and discourage them from nesting in and around beaches and overcrowding lakeside parks. A licensed contractor will carry out and monitor the effectiveness of the scare tactics. Residents will also notice District of West Kelowna staff using noise guns to drive geese away; a contractor will employ a team to routinely clean problem geese areas; and, West Kelowna will test water quality weekly at high use beaches during the late spring and summer.
Licensed contractors will continue with past years’ efforts to locate nests, conduct population counts and addle eggs to aid in further controlling goose numbers.
These humane efforts in West Kelowna are part of the wider Okanagan Valley Goose Management Program, which adheres to federal and provincial wildlife regulations. The program is a partnership involving the District of West Kelowna and the Cities of Kelowna, Penticton and Vernon, the Districts of Lake Country, Peachland and Summerland, the Glenmore Ellison Irrigation District, the Regional Districts of Central Okanagan and Okanagan Similkameen, the Towns of Oliver and Osoyoos and Westbank First Nation. The program is succeeding in holding population numbers steady in an effort to preserve water quality, reduce conflicts with humans and pets and prevent the invasive geese from crowding out natural species in the Okanagan as Canada geese are highly aggressive and have few natural predators.
For more information on goose management efforts in the community, please go to www.districtofwestkelowna.ca and select Departments/Parks, Fleet and Cemetery/Goose Management or visit www.okanagangooseplan.com.
News from © iNFOnews, 2014