COMMON CANADA GOOSE 89 



one of the birds struck him was sufficient to knock him from the saddle. 

 And the impact killed the goose" (The Evening Telegram, Toronto, 

 May 10, 1941). 



Both parents are assiduous in the care of their young. When swim- 

 ming on the open water, the gander usually leads the flock, the goslings 

 follow and the goose brings up the rear. The parents are ready at a mo- 

 ment's notice to protect their brood from natural enemies which beset 

 them, and are ever on the alert to guard their young from turtle, pike, 

 gull or eagle, willingly giving their lives to protect them or each other 

 from any attack. During July and the beginning of August, while the 

 young are attaining their growth, the adults lose their primary feathers 

 and are unable to fly. While this moult is in progress they remain 

 closely hidden in the weeds or bulrushes. About the middle of August 

 the old birds as well as the young are capable of flight, and by the be- 

 ginning of September they are strong on the wing and ready to under- 

 take the voyage to their winter grounds. 



The food of these geese is largely vegetable and in inland regions is 

 mainly secured by grazing in the stubble of the prairie grainfields, where 

 in the autumn they pick up the fallen grain, and in pastures, where they 

 nibble at the green herbage. In spring migrating flocks may do consid- 

 erable damage to young crops of wheat, barley, corn, and oats. They are 

 very regular in their feeding habits and if not disturbed will return day 

 after day to the same grounds. Favourite 

 times of day for feeding are early morning 

 and just before sunset; during the middle 

 of the day they resort to open water, sand- 

 bars, or mud flats. In the marshes they feed 

 on wild rice, sedges, and various other aquatic 

 plants, insects, larvae, crustaceans, and small 

 molluscs; they feed as do the Surface-feeding 



Ducks, tipping up with their tails and feet in the air and reaching down 

 to the bottom of the shallows with their long necks. When on the same 

 feeding grounds with other species they never seek their company and 

 never permit others to mingle with their flocks. 



The following interesting notes on the feeding habits of the Canada 

 Goose were sent the author by Arthur S. Hawkins: 



"Of the various waterfowl species, none is more terrestrial than the 

 Canada Goose. Some flocks spend considerably more time on land than 

 in the water. The large Honker flock that winters near Cairo, Illinois, 

 roosts on Horseshoe Lake at night but spends the day feeding or resting 

 in grain fields or on the sand bars of the Mississippi River where grit is 

 available. A flock wintering near Walworth, Wisconsin, appeared content 

 to spend both night and day on land. Drinking water and grit were fur- 

 nished by Turtle Creek, a small stream that flowed swiftly enough in 

 places and remained unfrozen. I have often observed geese at Horseshoe 

 Lake Refuge walk more than a quarter of a mile when they could have 

 covered this distance by flying much more quickly and easily. 



