By:Angela Marshall and Nick Buglione
But Nassau County officials are determined to make these unwanted tenants find a new home. Thanks to a $200,000 federal grant, the county has hired GeesePeace, a Virginia-based organization that has developed a successful method of removing geese throughout the U.S. Rockville Centre has joined the program, and some members of its Parks and Recreation staff are being trained in the latest geese-removal techniques.
The GeesePeace program consists of three major components: population stabilization, nuisance abatement and public education. Population stabilization is achieved through a process known as egg oiling. Nests are sought out, and eggs in the earliest stages of development are coated with corn oil, which prevents hatching.
Egg oiling is key, according to David Feld, GeesePeace president, since two nesting pairs of Canada geese can produce 108 goslings over eight years.
Although the birds are generally migratory, in recent years the once small population of non-migratory Canada geese has grown significantly. Since migration is a learned behavior, goslings born of non-migratory birds stay put. The population of resident geese has been growing by 10 to 15 percent each year, Feld said.
Their presence is a problem that has long plagued parks all over Long Island. The birds have turned soccer and baseball fields into mine fields lined with excrement. There have been few successful attempts to get rid of the geese in ways that satisfy parks officials, park-goers and environmentalists.
Last year, 500 eggs were oiled in Eisenhower Park, Lake Success, Lynbrook and the Jericho School District, which means there will be 5,000 fewer geese years down the road, Feld said. If you don-t have goslings, you don-t have parents, he said.
This year, even more communities, including Rockville Centre, are joining the cause. Rockville Centre has joined with Lynbrook, Malverne and Valley Stream to share resources in an attempt to oust the pesky birds.
The second facet of GeesePeace-s program, nuisance abatement, involves introducing border collies in areas where geese congregate. Viewing the dogs as potential predators, the geese fly elsewhere.
It-s important to introduce the collies before the geese molt in June, Feld said, because once they-ve shed their feathers, they cannot fly again until August.
By introducing the collies, what used to be safe to [geese] is no longer safe, Feld said. They need to find another place to molt.
Joe Nemeth, of Rockville Centre-s Parks and Recreation Department, warned that residents should not let their own dogs chase the geese. The border collies do not bite the geese, he said.
The last and perhaps most important component of the program involves educating members of the public on how they can help control geese populations. Feeding geese only encourages them to remain in parks, Feld said. Meanwhile, bread and other human foods can actually be harmful to the birds, which subsist mostly on grass. It-s like feeding twinkies to a kid, Feld said. Maybe the kids will eat it, but it-s not good for them.
Even with GeesePeace-s help, the county-s goose problem isn-t going to clear up quickly. The steps taken this year will have to be repeated annually until the geese learn Long Island is no longer a safe place to nest. It will take a long time and a lot of effort, Nemeth said.
In the meantime, residents should not worry about exposure to the goose droppings. Nemeth said the birds are not disease carriers, and most of the excrement is made up of grass.
