Geese Trapping at Chaparral Park

I volunteered yesterday (as well as last week at McCormick Ranch) to help Arizona Game and Fish Department and City of Scottsdale to trap Canada Geese at Chaparral Park.



This is part of urban avian study sponsored by State of Arizona including Arizona State University, Game & Fish Department, and City of Scottsdale. By learning about the movements and population growth of the urban geese, park staff will be able to determine the most effective way to manage their presence in Scottsdale parks. These geese were first trapped, neckbands and ankle bracelets with serial numbers attached, then released.

First we lured geese into traps (which I personally helped to build) with bread like what Mike Rabe of Game & Fish Dept. is doing here.



then volunteers would push them into one of the traps placed on grassy area



Once a group of geese are inside the trap, four panels are secured with plastic zip-ties. Each panel barricade is made from two pieces of 10 ft long 1/2" diameter electric conduits bent into 6.5 x 4 ft rectangular frame with fishing net lashed in between.



Some of the geese stayed on Chaparral Lake's island needed some encouragement from volunteers in kayaks.



Once the geese have been round-up, the banding process is fairly fast.



First, determine the goose's sex by squeezing its butt ("Is that a goose in your lap or are you just happy to see me?")



Second, attach neckband, ankle bracelet, and record tracking information,




Then let them go,



Some domestic geese were at a wrong place at a wrong time and they were released without any tags.



No animals were harmed during this and previous trapping.


Photo album links:
Geese round up at Chaparral Park (Flickr & Picasa)
Geese round up at McCormick Ranch (Flickr & Picasa)