The geese used to migrate through, but in the past few years seem to be settling in and "making more". Resident geese are a nuisance, producing several pounds of poop per day, but are still protected from harm. That doesn't mean methods of deterrence are illegal. Chasing them away is one approach. Harassing them out of your area with a jetski doesn't seem out of line, but stop short of causing harm. The
Indiana state DNR site suggests the following:
- adopt a no-feeding policy;
- immediately begin implementing habitat modification strategies that discourage future use by geese;
- begin implementing daily goose harassment techniques (at least once in the mid-morning and once immediately prior to sunset or any time of day when geese are seen at the site, but not on a regular routine as geese will become accustomed to the schedule) in early February or as soon as geese are observed using the site to discourage geese from acclimating to the site; and
- destroy and remove all evidence of nest building attempts on a daily basis until egg laying begins.
The picture below was taken Monday morning. There are approximately 45 geese here. That is a minimum of 90 pounds of concentrated water nutrients that will be put into the watershed today.