Thread: Goose cull today lake Ellesmere

I would agree with your comments around perceived numbers US. My personal opinion is that numbers are a lot less than the peak, higher than 2012 after the wrath but nowhere where what they were in 2010. Also I think the prolonged lower lake level has pushed a lot of birds to the coast end of the lake which is where you are seeing the big numbers shot.

They got culled in Tekapo last year and I would expect the same to happen this molt.

Geese are a lot more vulnerable in the longer team than rabbits. A mating pair of geese produces 5 to 8 chicks a year. A rabbit can spit out that number of offspring every 12 weeks so their breeding potential is a order of magnitude higher. Geese are also a lot more visible and vulnerable in the molt. I think the reality we face is a long slow grind downwards in terms of goose numbers.