Home / News / Critter Chatter Archive / March 2009 - Geese

The most familiar and widespread goose in North America, the Canada Goose can be found in all kinds of water all across the continent, from the tundra to the Gulf Coast. Some populations have become resident in urban areas, and are now coming into conflict with people.

In aviation, nearly 50% of all strikes with geese result in damage to the aircraft. The impact of a goose striking an aircraft can be the equivalent of 1.5 million pounds of energy, a force equal to that of an African Elephant stampeding over a parked car.

One-and-a-half minutes after taking off from LaGuardia Airport on Jan. 15, 2009, Flight 1549 crossed paths with a flock of Canada geese, sucking birds into both engines and losing all thrust. Without power and unable to reach an airport, pilot Chesley "Sully" Sullenberger glided the plane into the Hudson river. All 155 aboard survived, a nearly impossible feat, according to aviation experts.

The Canada Goose identification was made by the bird lab at the Smithsonian's National Museum of Natural History, by microscopic analysis of feathers found inside the engines and DNA tests on bird tissue also found there.

Airports where planes have struck birds are required to take measures to scare the birds off, but the plane that crashed in the Hudson, hit the birds nowhere near La Guardia Airport, from which it took off. It was at 3,200 feet, approximately over the Bronx Zoo. Non-migratory geese commonly fly at that altitude when traveling from feeding grounds to roosting grounds, according to experts.

From 1990 to 2007, there were nearly 80,000 reported incidents of birds striking nonmilitary aircraft, about one strike for every 10,000 flights, according to the Federal Aviation Administration and the Agriculture Department. These incidents are not expected to decline. Thirty-four of the 36 largest bird species in North America have shown significant population increases in the past 30 years, and Canada geese, which typically weigh 8 to 12 pounds, have quadrupled since 1990.

The professionals at Critter Control have certified bird control experts and bird abatement programs to assist you with any type of nuisance bird issues, including goose round-ups. The experts at Critter Control are equipped to handle it all. For information call 1-800-CRITTER.

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