.iO 



Birds — Our Liviiii; Resiiiirccs 



Fiy. 3. Priiduction ratio of Canada 

 geese in Quebec and Atlantie 

 regions of eastern Canada. 1Q75- 

 93 (Waterfowl Parts Collection 

 Survey. Canadian Wildlife Service. 

 Atlantic Region. Sackville. N.B.). 



2.5 



For further information: 



Jay B. Hestheck 



National Biological Service 



Massachusetts Cooperative Fish 



and Wildlife Research Unit 



University of Massachusetts 



Box 34220 



Amherst, MA 01003 



Quebec 



00- 



75 



87 



93 



Year 



resLilt.s suggested that the 



together, these 

 increases hi llie luimber of wintering geese in 

 the mid-Atlantic region did not result from 

 short-sliipping of geese. 



The increase of wintering geese in the mid- 

 Atlantic most likely resulted from expanding 

 resident populations. Resident geese generally 

 have larger body si/es. allowing them to winter 

 farther north than smaller-bodied migrant geese 

 (Lefebvre and Raveling 1967). Resident and 

 migratory-resident geese may selectively 

 remain in the mid-Atlantic region. In addition, 

 the resident population may be increasing faster 

 than the migrant population because survival 

 and production appear higher for residents than 

 for migrants. Residents survive better partly 

 because they are familiar with areas of food and 

 refuge and may avoid lumting areas (Johnson 

 and Castelli 1994). Production may be higher 

 for resident than migrant geese because the cli- 

 mate is less variable and milder with a longer 

 growing season in southern Canada and the 



United States than in the subarctic. Resident 

 geese may also reach reproductive age earlier 

 than migrant geese because the southerly grow- 

 ing season is longer, providing greater food 

 resources. 



References 



Conover, MR,, and GO. Chasko. 1985. Nuisance Canada 

 goose problems in the eastern United Slates. Wildlife 

 Society Bull. l3:22S-23-V 



Hestbeck. J.B. 1994a. Survival of Canada geese banded in 

 winter in the Atlantic Flyway. Journal of Wildlife 

 Management 58(4l: 748-756. 



Hestbeck, J.B. 1994b. Changing number of Canada geese 

 wintering in different regions of the Atlantic Flyway. In 

 D.H. Rusch. D.D. Humburg. M.D. Samuel, and B.D. 

 Sullivan, eds. Proceedings of the 1991 International 

 Canada Goose Symposium. Milwaukee. Wl. In press. 



He.stbeck. J.B., J.D. Nichols, and R.A. Malecki. 1991. 

 Estimates of movement and site fidelity using mark- 

 resight data of wintering Canada geese. Ecology 72:523- 

 53.V 



Johnson, F.A.. and P.M. Castelli. 1994. Demographics of 

 Canada geese breeding in southeastern Canada and the 

 northeastern United States. In D.H. Rusch. D.D. 

 Humburg. M.D. Samuel, and B.D. Sullivan, eds. 

 Proceedings of the 1991 International Canada Goose 

 Symposium. Milwaukee. WI. In press. 



Lefebvre. E.A.. and D.G. Raveling. 1967. Distribution of 

 Canada geese in winter as related to heat loss at varying 

 en\ironmental temperatures. Journal of Wildlife 

 Management 3 1 :538-546. 



Serie. J. 1993. Watertbwl harvest and population survey 

 data. U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, Office of Migratory 

 Bird Management, Laurel, MD. 68 pp. 



Stotts, V.D. 198.^. Canada goose management plan for the 

 Atlantic Flyway, 1983-95. Part 2. History and cuiTent sta- 

 tus. The Atlantic Flyway Waterfowl Council, niimeo. 



Trust, R.E., R,A. Malecki, L.J. Hindman, and D.C. Luszcz. 

 1986. Survival and recovery rates of Canada geese from 

 Maryland and North Carolina 1963-1974. Proceedings of 

 the Annual Conference of the Southeastern Association 

 of Fish and Wildlife Agencies 40:454-464. 



Arctic Nesting 

 Geese: 

 Alaskan 

 Populations 



by 

 Jerry Hupp 

 Robert Steliii 



Craig Ely 



Dirk Derksen 



National Biological Service 



North American populations of most goose 

 species have remained stable or have 

 increased in recent decades (USFWS and 

 Canadian Wildlife Service 1986). Some popula- 

 tions, however, have declined or historically 

 have had small numbers of individuals, and thus 

 are of special concern. Individual populations 

 of geese should be maintained to ensure that 

 they provide aesthetic, recreational, and ecolog- 

 ical benefits to the nation. Monitoring and man- 

 agement effoils for geese should focus on indi- 

 vidual populations to ensure that genetic diver- 

 sity is maintained (Anderson et al. 1992). 



Alaska is the only state with viable breeding 

 populations of arctic geese. Five species ( 1 1 

 subspecies) nest in Alaska, and although these 

 species also breed in arctic regions of Canada or 

 Russia, most geese of the Pacific Flyway origi- 

 nate in Alaska or use Alaskan habitats during 

 migration. Alaskan geese are often hunted for 



subsistence by Alaskan Natives. 



While data for some areas are lacking, pop- 

 ulations of greater white-fronted geese (Anser 

 albifrons jronuilis) and medium-sized Canada 

 geese (Bninta canadensis) in interior and north- 

 ern Alaska appear stable or have increased 

 (King and Derksen 1986). Although only a 

 small number of lesser snow geese {Chen 

 caendescens caeridescens) nest in Alaska, sub- 

 stantial populations occur in Canada and 

 Russia. Populations of Pacific black brant (B. 

 hernicla nii;rica)is). emperor geese (C. canagi- 

 ca). greater white-fronted geese, and cackling 

 Canada geese (B.C. minima) on the Yukon- 

 Kuskokwim Delta (YKD) of western Alaska 

 have declined from their historical numbers and 

 are the focus of special management efforts 

 (USFWS 1989). In addifion, populations of tule 

 white-fronted geese (A.«. gambeli), Aleutian 

 Canada geese (B.c. leucopareia), Vancouver 



