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On July 8, 2010, the residents of the Prospect Park area in Brooklyn, NY awoke to find the otherwise boisterous lake in their park almost entirely devoid of waterfowl. Citizens and neighbors asked, "What happened to all the geese?" Park officials initially claimed the birds "flew to Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge." But, park-goers realized that molting geese and their babies cannot fly. The New York Times was notified and following investigation, broke the story which later went national.

In the early hours of that July morning, 368 geese and their baby goslings were rounded up by the USDA, trucked to John F. Kennedy Airport and gassed to death, double-bagged and dumped in a landfill. Entire families were wiped out with deadly fumes as New Yorkers went to work on a ordinary Thursday morning, with no inkling of what was secretly happening right under their noses in "Brooklyn's Backyard."

The Prospect Park Canada goose slaughter raised important questions, but many have found the answers unsatisfactory. The slaughter had been coordinated by the USDA following the "Miracle on the Hudson" crash as part of a long term goal to reduce the number of Canada geese in the region by 80% – from an estimated 25,000 to 5,000, the "acceptable" number. Former NYC Parks Commissioner Henry Stern wrote that the NYC Audubon Society took issue with this target, declaring that the "figure is not supported by sound scientific research," and Dave Avrin, a National Park Service official said "we have not documented the fact that these geese are in fact a danger to the flying public," in response to the City's desire to remove geese from Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge, which is situated adjacent to JFK Airport.

On January 15, 2009 US Airways Flight 1549, an Airbus 320, flying from LaGuardia Airport, New York City to Charlotte, NC was ditched in the Hudson River within six minutes after take off. All 155 passengers safely evacuated the aircraft. It was later determined that the airbus struck a flock of Canada geese during its initial climb out, resulting in immediate and complete loss of thrust from both engines. For the first time, a commercial airline was destroyed as a result of a collision with Canada geese.

The 10-year old Airbus A320 had a recent history of engine problems. Two days earlier, on January 13, 2009, passengers flying the exact same aircraft following the identical route reported a series of loud bangs, and nearly forced an emergency landing at Newark International Airport. The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) later confirmed that the aircraft experienced a compressor stall, information that was not relayed to the plane's next pilot, Captain C.B. "Sully" Sullenberger, and his crew - information that may have proved extremely valuable.

DNA analysis of feathers obtained from the aircraft's engines was performed by the Smithsonian institute, and revealed that the geese involved in the crash most closely resembled migratory Canada geese originating from Labrador, Canada, and notably, were significantly different from feathers collected from New York City's resident Canada goose population. In short, "resident" Canada geese, geese that nest locally, were not responsible for the "Miracle on the Hudson" crash.

Although NYC's Canada geese did not cause the "Miracle on the Hudson" (or any fatality anywhere for that matter), an immediate effort was initiated to exterminate most of the city's Canada goose population. Limited Canada goose roundups and slaughters had been taking place in NYC for the previous 8 years, but following the crash of flight 1549 the office of New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg arranged a contractbetween the city's Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) and USDA APHIS's Wildlife Services (WS). Wildlife Services, which is operated by the USDA, exterminates animals nationwide, with an annual profit of over $100,000,000 in 2010 for exterminating nearly 5 million animals. Canada goose roundups have generally been motivated by property owners, developers, and airline companies, and have occurred in 38 states. The contract allowed WS to exterminate any geese within city owned property in New York City's five boroughs, and their US Department of Fish and Wildlife (FWS) depredation and NYS Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) permits, which listed Canada geese an exemption under "nuisance", allowed them to take Canada geese - first within 5, and later within 7 miles of the city's major airports.

“The goal of eliminating geese in seven miles, it’s just not possible,” states Patrick Kwan, the state director of the Humane Society of the United States. “We know that wildlife eradication programs don’t work.” And of course, killing animals doesn't make planes any stronger or more durable. But the "Miracle on the Hudson" incident served as the perfect excuse to launch an all-out "war" on Canada geese in New York City.

Starting during the summer of 2009, over 1,200 geese from NYC parks were rounded up and gassed by the USDA. In 2010 that number escalated to more than 1,600. 575 were killed from June to July 2011. The Mayor declared, "There is not a lot of cost involved in rounding up a couple thousand geese and letting them go to sleep with nice dreams."

Occasionally, airplanes collide with animals or other flying debris. Sometimes planes hit birds. Not very often, but it does happen. While 50% of all fatalities involving commercial aircraft worldwide since the 1950s can be attributed to pilot error, and 22% to mechanical failure, less than one percent can be attributed to collisions with wildlife. In other words, flights are over 100 times more likely to crash and cause fatalities for reasons other than "wildlife strikes." In fact, since 1990, among tens of millions of takeoffs and landings, there have only been 61 strikes recorded at JFK International and LaGuardia airports involving Canada geese, and none besides the "Miracle on the Hudson" flight sustained more than minimal damage.

While measures can be taken to reduce the incidence rate of collisions, over the course of hundreds of millions of flights, a minute fraction will collide with birds and other wildlife. In fact: it is a statistical inevitability; the consequences of which can of course be very grave. The question is therefore: how can the impact of such collisions be minimized or further avoided altogether? This is why airplanes and are built to withstand such collisions, and can even withstand engine hits from large migratory birds, assuming they are in good working order. Usually pilots don't even notice, or sometimes are forced to make an emergency landing at the nearest airport to assess the damage. But when Flight 1585 landed in a river it was apparently more convenient to blame geese than investigate the plane's obvious mechanical deficiencies.

Using canoes and netting, the USDA corral the flightless geese and their young, they are separated into small pens, plastic zip-ties are used to bind their feet together, and they are shoved into mobile gas chambers to be killed, or sent to commercial processors for slaughter. Carbon dioxide is the standard gas used by USDA to kill the geese. Carbon dioxide asphyxiation is an especially cruel process that slowly strangles geese for many anguishing minutes as they struggle to breathe. It is far from humane, particularly because geese have capabilities to hold their breath for long periods while diving for food, so they die even more slowly than most animals exposed to this ruthless method of oxygen deprivation. Astonishingly, despite this knowledge, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) condones this practice as "euthanasia."

Some voiced complaints that by disposing the geese in landfills after they were killed, their meat had been wasted. In May 2011 - one month before the 2011 roundups were to commence - NYC's DEP and USDA announced that NYC's geese would be "processed" in Pennsylvania and sent to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. This public relations ploy quelled some of the public's criticism. In 2011, the USDA planned to slaughter the geese at a commercial poultry processor in NYC and "donate" them to local food banks.

Yet, wild goose meat can be extremely harmful to one's health. Wild geese travel to many different locations, are exposed to various toxins including mercury and lead, and eat grass that in public parks which is routinely sprayed with pesticides. Many chemical residues and possible PCB's can remain in the tissues of wild geese who do not come from a controlled environment. Is such meat thus safe to feed to people without proper, complete and individual testing? Goose meat donated to the food bank doesn't carry a label of source or origin. The Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, which accepted the meat from 2011's roundups claimed the meat's toxicity was tested by the USDA, yet, the USDA claimed it is each state's responsibility for testing the slain geese for possible toxins.

Proper testing of geese for possible contaminants can cost up to $100.00 per bird. New York City's Canada geese often feed on park grass treated with pesticides and other chemicals. Moreover, according to bird experts, molting geese are usually "feverish" and somewhat "sickly" when they are going through the process of losing feathers and being flightless (the time in early summer when most USDA goose roundups occur). Goose hunters themselves do not eat geese killed in the summer when the birds are going through the molt. Rounded up geese have been rejected in many states across the country as possible food "donations" for poor people. Recently, these include Washington state, Virginia and Alabama. So, why are molting geese rounded up from NYC parks "safe" to feed to people in another state? Perhaps they are only "safe" if proper testing procedures are being short circuited? That seems to have occurred recently with ground turkey meat, when 36 million pounds of ground turkey was recalled due to suspected salmonella contamination. One person died from salmonella and dozens became sick around the country.

The 575 Canada geese that were sent to a commercial poultry processor yielded 474 lbs., less than one pound per bird. We can't help but wonder -- how can this be? Were the rounded up geese mostly baby, newborn gosling? Did geese overheat and die on the nearly 3 hour truck ride to Harrisburg, PA in mid-June? Was there an issue at the slaughterhouse?

Meanwhile, the USDA aims to continue this killing spree within 7 miles of all airports citing not only aviation safety but boasting the “added value” of reducing damage to NYC’s public properties due to fecal droppings.

Obviously, people want to avoid contact with any animal droppings, however, scientific studies do not show that goose droppings pose any special health threats. The Humane Society of the United States also confirms that scientific studies do not show that they pose any special health threats. Ordinary good hygiene, such as washing hands and leaving shoes at the door, are adequate prevention if you accidentally contact animal droppings. If the issue is just about goose poop, we strongly suggest that parks clean it up along with much of the other litter that pollutes our parks, not just for humans but pets and wildlife as well.

The USDA claims that goose defecation can cause a elevation in dangerous levels of bacteria including Cryptosporidium, Campylobacter, Giardia, and Salmonella in our drinking water, however, research does not support these notions. "Geese feces are no more dangerous than other feces and probably a lot less so than human feces," says David E. Stalknecht of the University of Georgia, who co-authored a study on bird droppings for The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention in Atlanta. "Geese present no more of a health risk than any other species, including cats and dogs," says Dr. Julia Murphy, public health veterinarian for the Virginia State Department of Health. “Certainly there’s a possibility of pathogens (disease-causing bacteria) in fecal material but as a particular risk factor in and of itself, there simply is no direct link,” says Murphy. "You would have to ingest droppings to experience discomfort (such as mild gastrointestinal cramps or upset stomach)," she adds.

Retired wildlife disease specialist Kathryn Converse also says she has never seen research that links Canada geese to human health problems. "My feeling is that if you want to kill geese, at least be open about it ... don't use their health as an excuse (to try to win public acceptance)," she says. Murphy, the Virginia veterinarian, offers this advice: "Wash your hands after being outdoors, and keep tabs on youngsters too young to tell feces from dirt. If you step in goose poop or get a little on your hands, wash it off."

In most cases, citizens are not aware of the goose slaughters taking place in their communities. But, the people of Brooklyn's Prospect Park area were not satisfied with brush-offs and obfuscation. Instead, they organized through a Facebook page, For the love of the geese in Prospect Park. In the week after the Prospect Park goose slaughters, a vigil was held for the geese organized by Mary Beth Artz and Chio Flores, which was attended by local politicians and several prominent animal advocates. More than 100 people attended the solemn event and it was covered by several members of the press, including NBC and the NY Times.

Two more rallies would be held for the geese in ensuing weeks, organized by Friends of Animals and In Defense of Animals. But, ultimately, it requires far more than protests, rallies, and the formation of a Facebook page to stop a carnage that has been in motion for almost a decade.

In response to the criticism and pressure, Prospect Park formed a special Wildlife Committee to address and implement non-lethal management of the geese. Based on recommendations from the Humane Society of the United States, Prospect Park trained its staff to conduct "egg addling," an involved process which prevents laid eggs from developing, this procedure requires using an umbrella to scare away extremely protective parents away from their nesting site in order to lather and coat the eggs in vegetable oil. The eggs are replaced into the nests, but are no longer viable. The Prospect Park Alliance also hired "GooseBusters," a company that uses a trained border collie to harass the geese away, although potentially to another park where the USDA might kill them. Nevertheless, even the formation of a program to harass the resident geese and oil eggs was not enough to guarantee that a repeat culling of the geese would not occur in 2011.

In March 2011, another event was held at Prospect Park. "Hands Around the Lake" was organized to honor the geese at Prospect Park and to plead for their right to live. The event attracted more than 100 participants, again including politicians and animal protection organization spokespersons. But there was still no guarantee that that the Prospect Park geese would be spared from another USDA roundup, and no indication what the "magic number" of geese would need to be to keep the feds out.

When the geese started nesting in April, there were about 35 Canada geese in Prospect Park. (Of course, considering the USDA had killed368 geese the previous year, which should indicate that killing accomplishes nothing.) Then, the miracle goslings were discovered. Hatched from oiled eggs, and found in the northern part of the park, an unusual location to find nesting geese in Prospect Park, these unlikely additions into the world gave the community even more drive to protect Prospect Park's geese. The USDA might go all across New York City looking for geese, but they weren't going to come here.

Thus, in May 2011, "Goosewatch" was formed, organized by David Karopkin. The goal of Goosewatch was to insure that if another USDA roundup occurred at Prospect Park, it would not go unnoticed and unrecorded. 35 Canada geese remained in the park at the time that molting began in 2011. These geese lost their ability to fly, which included the 'miracle goslings' - babies hatched from oiled eggs, defying all odds of survival. In the event USDA showed up again, they would be photographed and videotaped. The residents of the community would not be sleeping through another USDA roundup and killing in Prospect Park.

We believe that because the roundups are conducted by a governmental agency, take place on public property, and are financed by taxpayers, we have every right to be present and document what transpires. The public should have the opportunity to judge for themselves whether or not they support the goose removal program which their tax dollars pay for.

Word got out about our efforts and many people joined us, so we developed a plan to organize a flash rally, and over 100 neighbors of the Prospect Park community offered their phone numbers for an emergency speed dial list, waiting for our alert to rush to the park to join in protest. Volunteers also signed on and agreed to monitor the park in the wee hours of the morning. Armed with a cell phone and camera, our team alternated nights waiting at the park between 11pm and 8am instead of sleeping at home in our beds.

We were covered favorably and many members of the press requested to be added to our emergency notification phone call list. Several major media outlets covered our plan, including the Wall Street Journal and NBC News. We attained enough notoriety that DEP Spokesman Farrell Sklerov remarked to the New York Times that the authorities “don’t want lots of people looking around or gathering,” referring to threats from animal-rights advocates to interfere with the roundup.

With the help of Friends of Animals, we brought our message to Mayor Bloomberg. We showed unity and strength, but despite our efforts, not a single photograph exists of the 2011 NYC Canada goose round ups. In the end though, the Prospect Park geese were spared from gassing or slaughter.

It is perhaps not surprising under the circumstances, that when USDA prepared its 2011 goose "hit list," Prospect Park was not on it. USDA claims that the "low" number of geese at Prospect Park this year did not merit a cull. However, (as of this point) we know that USDA did hit more than one other park with fewer geese than Prospect Park's 35. Many believe GooseWatch was the deciding factor in why the USDA decided to skip over Prospect Park. After all, they admittedly do not want lots of people "looking around and gathering." On the other hand, Prospect Park had hired a border collie company to scare the geese away so as to reduce their numbers prior to the DEC headcount. Furthermore, it's now well known that Prospect Park lies outside the 7-mile "zero tolerance" radius from the city's airports.

We may never know decisively whether or not GooseWatch was the reason Prospect Park's geese were saved. Yet, undoubtedly Prospect Park was spared because of the powerful and passionate community that spoke up and made ourselves known all year long. We must conclude that due to the combined efforts of the dedicated activists of the Prospect Park (and other) areas, a small, but very significant victory was achieved in saving the approximately 30 geese at Prospect Park in 2011.

Nevertheless, 575 Canada geese were killed in NYC during the summer of 2011. Suzanne Soehner witnessed the USDA in Inwood Hill Park while walking her two dogs, but did not have a camera. She considered scaring off the geese, but was threatened with her arrest by four police officers accompanying the USDA. Residents in Staten Island mourn the round-up and deaths of more than 200 beloved geese from their park.

The battle that reached our shores in Brooklyn, NY, was in fact, the tip of the iceberg, goose round ups are happening across the country, and other parts of the world. Even in distant places like Washington State, Wisconsin, Virginia, Arkansas, New Jersey, and even the United Kingdom, relationships have been formed among goose activists to fight against the roundups.

In 2012, GooseWatch NYC continued our campaign, and expanded our goals. Instead of simply focussing on one park (Prospect Park) our members spread out to parks across the five boroughs. We spent several months determining other parks which were candidates for roundups, and canvassed each of these parks in hopes of finding a neighbor who would be willing to join our efforts to document a roundup. We also collected the names and phone numbers of people who said they would be willing to come to the park if a roundup was taking place. We joined with Mobile Matters to create a mobile platform which would allow a text message and voicemail to be sent immediately to our entire call list.

We gained more supporters using "chalk bombs" with our newly created phone number "567-NY-GOOSE" and from more than 20 parks we had been deciding between, eventually settled on 8 parks to stake out where we would wait for USDA agents to arrive every morning from early June until late July once we knew the geese could fly again. GooseWatch NYC had a member staking out each park every single morning, equipped with a cell phone and a camera, ready to document a roundup and call for backup - the phone list had grown extensive, over 500 people in addition to our media contacts. Volunteers rotated days, coordinated time shifts within a single day. For six weeks from early June until late July, members of GooseWatch watched the sun come up in the company of molting Canada geese, and in many cases their goslings.

In Manhattan, we covered Morningside Park, with 12 geese including a family of newborn goslings, Riverside Park, a sprawling park on the west side of Manhattan with several locations with nesting geese which we later learned was a roundup site, Central Park, home of a new family of geese (which even gained some notoriety on Humans of New York's website), and Inwood Hill Park, a 2011 roundup site with a new family of geese; East River State Park in Brooklyn, a previous roundup site with two families of geese and several other residents; Brookville Park in Queens, right near JFK airport with 9 geese, Kissena Park with over 15 geese, and Little Bay Park with a large number of geese. We also were able to some extent to cover Clove Lake Park and Silver Lake Park in Staten Island, however, we know this was the site of a roundup and we were not there that day.

By spreading out across the city we were able to reach more people, and our volunteers met people in all five boroughs who were outraged to learn about the killing and willing to help. We recieved phone calls from many different people who found our number, most were interested in helping, some just wanted to know what was going on. One young man in particular was memorable because he spent the first minute and a half of the call cursing us out without even taking a break, thinking we were the USDA. In the end, we made critical contacts in several different parks across the city that allowed us to keep close contact on the geese we sought to protect.

Over the months of May, June, and especially July, we were able to get our name out, and gathered over 500 phone numbers for people who agreed to be called in the event of a roundup. We also collected 500 new email addresses for our mailing list and nearly 1,000 fans to the new Facebook page. Our efforts were covered in mostly positive ways by a number of media outlets, some were local NYC neighborhood papers like the Brooklyn Paper, Queens Times Ledger, and AFP. We grabbed further headlines by holding a large protest outside Mayor Bloomberg's mansion when we learned that over 200 geese had already been killed in parks throughout the city, and GooseWatch founder was interviewed with HLN's Jane Velez-Mitchell.

However, we overlooked one big park - Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge. And we should have known there was a problem when Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand announced her support for a roundup and slaughter of the geese there, describing the threat as imminent. We were at Jamaica Bay Wildlife Refuge the first day goslings were found and in fact knew there was a large population of geese and more families expected. While no roundup had ever been allowed at the refuge we were concerned that a powerful senator could have her way. Unfortunately, staking out the refuge was also a logistical nightmare - none of our members had a car to get there, and in any case we calculated that emergency distress calls would be unlikely to have an impact since it was so far removed from a residential neighborhood, and since we were unsure whether or not a roundup would occur there, ultimately we decided against allocating our resources to the refuge. However, we protested the announcement by Sen. Gillibrand, and soon after, Karopkin was granted a meeting with her office.

Our pleas were ignored, and our hearts dropped when we learned that 750 geese had been rounded up from the refuge and taken to slaughter, an unprecedented action on a federal wildlife refuge. Yet, in an ironic twist, we were able to obtain candid photos of the roundup operation, which were provided not by USDA or the the City of New York as we had requested, but by an employee of National Park Services, on whose land the operation had taken place. We were able to distribute these photos, and let New Yorkers see in clear images of a roundup operation occurring in New York City. Metro NY featured a cover story about the roundup and published an Op Ed by Karopkin. Once again, GooseWatch NYC held a protest outside Sen. Gillibrand's office. As the molting/roundup season came to an close, with geese in flight, GooseWatch NYC promised to continue fighting for an end to the killing of geese in our great city.

Canada geese are part of New York City. Killing New York City’s Canada geese is not a solution to dangers posed by aircraft collisions with animals; in actuality offers nothing to resolve and potentially increases the threats to air travel caused by collisions with migrating birds (and other wildlife). Without modifying the desirable habitats they occupy, killing geese only encourages new birds to move in - as we have seen - the USDA wipes out geese at the same sites year after year.

The slaughter of New York City's Canada geese is a scientifically unsound, wasteful investment, resulting in a significant blight on NYC’s record and reputation, adding to an already poor history regarding animal affairs. Geese are part of NYC. They belong here, and this is their home too.

Every winter, millions of birds including geese fly through the region. Killing geese cannot reduce the threat of bird strikes in any meaningful way, and we have seen the attention shift from areas where significant action are needed to improve safety for the lives of airplane passengers. The annual roundup and slaughter of Canada geese in NYC is a great shame.

We demand an end to City Hall's war on Canada geese (not to mention the USDA, Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, New York City Department of Environmental Protection, New York City Parks Department, and the Federal Aviation Administration).

We are grateful for elected officials such as Assembly Member Alan Maisel, Sen. Eric Adams and NYC Council Member Letitia James, who have spoken out about the slaughters. Additionally, we appreciate NYC Council Members Brad Lander and Steve Levin's efforts for legislation which would require community notification of any future impending slaughters.

We are grateful to the experts who have come out against the killing of geese in NYC, including avation leaders, biologists, and veternarians. We are especially grateful to the concerned citizens of New York City and beyond who have let their support, time, and in some cases financial resources to this cause. We are grateful to anyone willing to give our arguments a fair shake.

Can we not expect to fly in aircraft that is properly maintained, by pilots who are properly prepared and compensated? Why should we be forced to choose between the protection of wildlife and airplane safety when we know these options are not mutually exclusive? Does the public not deserve notification of government plans regarding decisions that affect wildlife in public spaces? Do we not deserve a say in how animals in our community are treated?

We must examine the way the decisions are made. Let's cut off our congressional representatives which provide funding for Wildlife Services, we are tired of the bogus expenditures of tax dollars, federal agencies that needlessly and mercilessly kill animals. To many of us wildlife is a part of our lives, and we believe animals share our space and have the right to be here.

To property who feel the geese are a nuisance, we are asking for a community discussion regarding the implementation of one or more of the various non-lethal methods that are successfully implemented worldwide. The geese are not yours to kill. We can co-exist with our wild animal neighbors, and allow them the space they need, just as we need our own. Our technological progress and real estate expansions bear risks and responsibilities. Our morality defines us.

We urge your appreciation of Canada geese, perhaps our city's closest access to wildlife. Please let your neighbors, community, and elected representatives know that you care about urban wildlife and are against the USDA's Canada goose killings. Enough is enough! No more reckless and insidiously cruel, unnecessary goose slaughters in New York City, and elsewhere for that matter. Find another way - there are so many options that can be employed to manage human-goose conflicts.

"Spread love, it's the Brooklyn way."

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goosewatching@gmail.com

(567) NY-GOOSE

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