[Peace-discuss] [Peace] to keep a balance, Urb Park proposes to kill 60-100 Crystal lake geese-- read & take survey

John W. jbw292002 at gmail.com
Mon May 11 20:14:01 UTC 2020 

On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 2:57 PM Robert Naiman <naiman.uiuc at gmail.com> wrote:

Another idea: my understanding is that some dogs have been trained to chase
> away geese. So, instead of killing the excess geese, some of the geese
> could just be encouraged to move along.
>

That's one of the things the park district has tried.  From the report:

*A coyote decoy, which must be moved frequently, is one of the management
strategies the park district employed early on. More recently, a licensed
and trained dog hazing service has helped limit goose impacts in portions
of the park.*



> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 3:46 PM Stuart Levy via Peace-discuss <
> peace-discuss at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
>
>> (Moving to peace-discuss instead of the peace announcements list)
>>
>> What comes next - yes, this is my thought as well.   The geese are
>> occupying an ecological niche.   How long will it take to refill it?   Are
>> they just avoiding the labor of goose chasing for a season or two, if they
>> kill off 3/4rs of them now?
>>
>> On 5/11/20 12:36 PM, Debra Schrishuhn via Peace wrote:
>>
>> We fill our urban spaces with artificial ponds, nicely landscaped with
>> lots of regularly mown grass and no predators other than vehicles and
>> wonder why the geese congregate, along with ducks, killdeers, herons,
>> turtles, and the few species of amphibians not extirpated by pesticides and
>> habitat destruction. People forget that this part of Illinois was marshy
>> prairie, and though humans drained and paved it for their own uses, the
>> animals that were here before us either move elsewhere or make do—wrens and
>> robins building nests in gutters and corners of structures, swifts nesting
>> in chimneys, opossums and raccoons and those “damned gray squirrels “
>> foraging in unsecured garbage receptacles...well, list goes on. Want to get
>> rid of the geese? Get rid of the water.
>>
>> The problem I see with the park district’s planned goose slaughter is
>> that it does not address what comes next. Other geese will simply move in
>> to fill the vacuum. Does the slaughter become an annual event? If geese are
>> slaughtered throughout Urbana will geese from Champaign move east? Geese
>> are pretty smart birds, but they don’t understand jurisdictional
>> boundaries.
>> Sent from my iPhone
>>
>> On May 11, 2020, at 12:06 PM, John W. <jbw292002 at gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 12:04 PM Lois Steinberg <loisiyoga at gmail.com>
>> wrote:
>>
>> but there are alternatives to murdering them...
>>> Lois
>>>
>>
>> Perhaps there are.  But if you read the actual report from the Urbana
>> Park District, you'll see how many different strategies have already been
>> employed, in vain.
>>
>>
>>
>>
>>> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 11:35 AM John W. via Peace <
>>> peace at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
>>>
>>>> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 8:00 AM Debra Schrishuhn via Peace <
>>>> peace at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
>>>>
>>>> Some are non-native--sort of. They were here; wild populations were
>>>>> destroyed; captive geese were introduced
>>>>>
>>>>> From the book "Wild Neighbors":
>>>>>
>>>>> "Once decimated by hunting and habitat loss, Canada geese rebounded
>>>>> after captive birds were released throughout the country.
>>>>>
>>>>> "People may be surprised to hear that birds learn to migrate from
>>>>> their parents and flock—they don't hatch with this complex knowledge. So
>>>>> released geese never learned to fly north and instead took up local
>>>>> residence year-round.
>>>>>
>>>> "We've provided food and safety right here in our cities and suburbs.
>>>>> The geese have no reason to go elsewhere, so they settle in and raise
>>>>> families....
>>>>>
>>>>
>>>> And to sound a discordant note in this whole conversation, this is why
>>>> I don't like the geese around here.  The geese may be native to central
>>>> Illinois at certain times of the year, but they're not native to urban
>>>> areas and they're not native year-round.  i don't know what the answer is
>>>> for Crystal Lake Park, but I think it's ridiculous to see flocks of geese
>>>> sauntering across busy streets in the vicinity of North Prospect in
>>>> Champaign.  As we humans have done with so many species (like the damned
>>>> grey squirrel), we've introduced them to habitats where they don't belong,
>>>> and more or less domesticated them until their population gets out of
>>>> control and becomes destructive.
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>> "It's one thing to shoo a few geese off a back lawn and another to
>>>>> convince a large flock that has used a park for years that they ought to go
>>>>> elsewhere. That requires a plan. A coordinated program
>>>>> <https://www.humanesociety.org/resources/plan-ahead-make-peace-canada-geese> will
>>>>> save in the long run and be more successful....
>>>>>
>>>>> "Scientific studies do not show that goose droppings pose any special
>>>>> health threats. Obviously, people want to avoid contact with any animal
>>>>> droppings. Ordinary good hygiene, such as washing hands and leaving shoes
>>>>> at the door, are adequate prevention if you accidentally contact animal
>>>>> droppings."
>>>>>
>>>>> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 7:52 AM Debra Schrishuhn <
>>>>> deb.pdamerica at gmail.com> wrote:
>>>>>
>>>>>> Yes, please! And thank you (honk).
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Yesterday in a local place with a pond (not Crystal Lake) I watched
>>>>>> goose families move from one pond to another just before a rainstorm. When
>>>>>> the goslings were not  going fast enough, the parents shooed them forward
>>>>>> by vocalizing and running at them with wings flapping. When crossing roads
>>>>>> the adults will not abandon their young to save themselves, but rather urge
>>>>>> the young ones ever faster. Geese also form family coops, with multiple
>>>>>> broods of youngsters grazing surrounded by multiple pairs of watchful
>>>>>> parents.
>>>>>>
>>>>>> Non-lethal means of control could be by the innovative geeseherd idea
>>>>>> or the more usual human nest robbers as the park has done in the past. In
>>>>>> fact, given the number of broods at Crystal Lake Park this year I'd say
>>>>>> that the nest robbing/egg destruction project was abandoned--dare one
>>>>>> suggest that it was done to make the goose problem look more acute? It
>>>>>> cannot be because the geese are particularly good at hiding their
>>>>>> nests--the park's so-called renovations have taken out much of the
>>>>>> underbrush and scrub where they nested (and also decreased significant
>>>>>> habitat for local songbirds).
>>>>>>
>>>>>> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 7:36 AM Karen Aram <karenaram at hotmail.com>
>>>>>> wrote:
>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Thank you Niloofar and Deb,
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I just completed the survey, having just now seen it, and I’m
>>>>>>> furious over the inhumanity of slaughtering these love creatures. I’m just
>>>>>>> as outraged at the genocide or culling as they usually refer to it, of
>>>>>>> wildlife, animals as I am of humans.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> The upgrades or improvements they are planning would be better left
>>>>>>> alone if it requires this slaughter.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> I will with your permission, circulate your letter below, along with
>>>>>>> Niloofar’s on FB, along with the link to the survey and phone number.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On May 11, 2020, at 05:01, Debra Schrishuhn via Peace <
>>>>>>> peace at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Outstanding, Susan and Niloofar. I took the survey last week and
>>>>>>> have been spreading the word. The geese are native, just like our corn-fed
>>>>>>> whitetail deer that sometimes form a traffic hazard in the rural parts of
>>>>>>> the county. If Crystal Lake kills all but 20 geese, by next year there will
>>>>>>> be another 80-100 geese in the park because they are widespread in this
>>>>>>> area.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Absent natural predators (which the park officials would no doubt
>>>>>>> find even more of a "nuisance") the geese can and should be managed without
>>>>>>> wholesale slaughter, disingenuously called "Collection and Charity
>>>>>>> Donation" by park officials who want to soft-pedal their plans. And the
>>>>>>> plan to donate the meat to food banks may be well-meaning, but it is
>>>>>>> seriously flawed, as anyone who has ever tried/ learned to cook wild goose
>>>>>>> meat can attest.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Besides people taking the survey, who can we call today? Here is the
>>>>>>> main number--call and protest on behalf of the geese. 217.367.1544
>>>>>>> <%201-217-367-1544>
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> Now here are the commissioners
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *Michael Walker / President*-since 1983, reelected in 2019
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *Nancy Delcomyn / Vice President*
>>>>>>> Commissioner since 1993
>>>>>>> Next up for election 2023
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *Roger Digges / Commissioner* elected in 2019
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *Meredith Blumthal / Commissioner*
>>>>>>> Commissioner since 2010
>>>>>>> Next up for election 2021
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> *LaShaunda Cunningham / Commissioner*
>>>>>>> Commissioner since 2015
>>>>>>> Next up for election 2021
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> These folks need to feel some community heat.
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> One for the honkers!
>>>>>>> Deb
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>> On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 1:57 AM Niloofar Shambayati via Peace <
>>>>>>> peace at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Susan,
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Thank you so much for spreading the word about the horrific
>>>>>>>> proposal to slaughter the Crystal Lake's geese to supposedly attract more
>>>>>>>> visitors. Don't they see how ironic it is that the Park houses Anita
>>>>>>>> Purves Nature Center, whose main goal is to help children realize that
>>>>>>>> humans are part of the nature, not its masters?! Can't we accept some
>>>>>>>> "inconveniences" in return for the joy of watching goslings experience life
>>>>>>>> under the protection of their parents, who're partners for life?
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Please urge the commissioners to reject this proposal as cruel and
>>>>>>>> of highly dubious effect.
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> Niloofar Shambayati
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>> On Sun, May 10, 2020 at 5:48 PM Susan Parenti via Peace <
>>>>>>>> peace at lists.chambana.net> wrote:
>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> The Urbana Park District Board of Commissioners is going to vote
>>>>>>>>> on Tuesday night May 12 whether or not they support the Park District's
>>>>>>>>> proposal to kill off 60–100 geese in Crystal Lake Park, as a way to manage
>>>>>>>>> them and make a balance between number of geese and size/capacities of
>>>>>>>>> Park.  (They intend to leave 20 geese alive).
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> You can see their proposal here :
>>>>>>>>> https:// <https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/K6R2HWQ>
>>>>>>>>> www.urbanaparks.org/projects/geese-population-and-management
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Inside the proposal is a 3 minute survey about how you feel about
>>>>>>>>> the geese in the Park—the survey puts the geese in a negative light. But
>>>>>>>>> please do the survey now, or at least before 6pm Tuesday night. You don't
>>>>>>>>> have to agree with my sentiments.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Here is the survey:
>>>>>>>>> https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/K6R2HWQ
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> How do I feel about this? Daily I go to the Park to see/hear the
>>>>>>>>> geese—they’re the main attraction. The Park District secured a grant to
>>>>>>>>> improve Crystal Park, and they feel that the presence of the geese gets in
>>>>>>>>> the way of those improvements. .  They say that lots of people won’t go to
>>>>>>>>> the Park because of the geese—I don’t know anyone who feels that way. But,
>>>>>>>>> mostly, for me the killing off of the geese is a human-centered way of
>>>>>>>>> thinking (if it’s good for humans, then it’s fine) and that way of thinking
>>>>>>>>> I want to stop as it’s a big component of why we have catastrophic climate
>>>>>>>>> change.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> “GEESEHERDS”  I propose that given that the swimming pool will be
>>>>>>>>> closed all summer, why doesn’t the Park District use 2 ex-pool employees
>>>>>>>>> and make them GEESEHERDS—a variation on shep(sheep)herds. These geessherds
>>>>>>>>> can take care of the geese, tend to their problems, turn their poop into
>>>>>>>>> iron-rich compost. This way the park District is free of taking care of the
>>>>>>>>> geese, and two people have a job.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> Please spread the word. We don’t have much time.
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> --
>>>>>>>>> *Susan Parenti*
>>>>>>>>> *Educational Coordinator *
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> *The School for Designing a Society *www.designingasociety.net
>>>>>>>>>
>>>>>>>>> *Like us on Facebook <http://www.facebook.com/designasociety>!*
>>>>>>>>> _______________________________________________
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>>>>>>>>> Peace at lists.chambana.net
>>>>>>>>> https://lists.chambana.net/mailman/listinfo/peace
>>>>>>>>>
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