GooseWatch NYC Will be Watching/Documenting USDA Agents Removing Geese In City Parks

Robert Guadagna took this photo of USDA agents rounding up geese on Randall's Island on June 17, 2009.

City-Wide

Federal agents, if you come back to city parks to kill more geese, they will be ready.

Armed with digital cameras and cell phones, more than 500 New Yorkers are members of GooseWatch NYC, at the ready to photograph if and when the city’s geese will be culled this summer, according to Metro NY.

GooseWatch NYC was started last year by Brooklynite David Karopkin. Karopkin, 27, said he started the group after nearly 400 Prospect Park geese were killed in 2009. Agents with the U.S. Department of Agriculture started killing geese in city parks that year, after two geese brought down Flight 1549, the “Miracle on the Hudson” landing in January 2009.

“I made a decision I wasn’t going to be in my bed when the USDA came back to Prospect Park,” said Karopkin.

Karopkin sends his members a text message, voicemail and e-mail letting them know where the agents are when they are spotted. He instructs members of GooseWatch not to interfere with the roundup.

“The only thing we would like to do is capture footage,” he said. “So when the USDA claims what they are doing is humane, we can show what they’re doing.”

USDA agents removed geese from at least 13 city parks last year, ranging from Flushing Meadows Park in Queens to Inwood Hill Park at the tip of Manhattan.

June and July are the prime months for when the geese can be corralled.

“They come in June and July because that’s when the geese are molting,” said Karopkin. “They have goslings, they are vulnerable."

The geese can’t fly away during their molting season, so they are basically grounded.

“It’s when their new flight feathers are coming in and they can’t fly,” said Edita Birnkrant, director of Friends of Animals. “Both baby geese and adults are stuffed into crates, transported long distances in high heat and slaughtered.”

In the past two years, the geese were gassed to death. But last year, after complaints, the geese were butchered and pounds of meat were given to food banks in Pennsylvania.

But Karopkin said there has to be a better way to keep planes safe, and birds alive.

“Unless the plan is literally to kill every single birds you’re never going to reduce the air strikes to zero,” he said. “We’re just killing birds and crossing our fingers.”

Robert Guadagna took this close-up shot of geese in crates after the USDA agents who rounded them up at Randall's Island took an hour-long breakfast, according Karopkin.

A history of geese killing

For the past three summers, the USDA has been killing geese within a seven-mile radius of the city’s three airports, JFK , LaGuardia and Newark.

2009: 1,235 geese were killed, 368 alone from Prospect Park.

2010: USDA agents killed 1,509 Canada geese in parks throughout the city and 167 more in Long Island.

2011: 575 Canada geese removed and killed from New York City

2012: The USDA did not answer when Metro asked if officials are coming back this summer. “Dates and locations for removal of resident Canada geese have not been developed, are dependent on numerous variables, and would not be shared in advance,” USDA spokesman Lee Humberg wrote in an email exchange with Karopkin, posted on his website.

Read More:

New Yorkers ready to witness and document geese killing

Metro NY - May 29, 2012 - Carly Baldwin

Goose Watch Established in Prospect Park 24/7

A Walk In The Park - May 20, 2011

Prospect Park Goose Reduction Plan Unveiled

A Walk In The Park - November 19, 2010

Geese Kill Zones Expanded In NYC

A Walk In The Park - October 5, 2010

A "Sound" Canadian Goose Management Plan Coming Soon To Prospect Park?

A Walk In The Park - September 23, 2010

Geese Protesters Flock To Bloomberg Residence

A Walk In The Park - August 10, 2010 - By Geoffrey Croft

Additional Geese Massacres Coming

A Walk In The Park - July 23, 2010

Hundreds Of Geese Killed In Prospect Park

A Walk In The Park - July 13, 2010

USDA Bird-Strike Prevention Killing Plan Could Wipe-Out Half-Dozen Species In Jamaica Bay

Under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s proposal, Wildlife Services staffers at the Kennedy Airport would be authorized to kill a half-dozen birds within a 5-mile radius. The intent is to reduce the number of bird strikes on planes. The plan has heavily criticized by environmentalists and animal rights groups who say the plan is mis-guided as the plan targets resident birds which are generally not involved in the aviation accidents here. Public comments on the plan will be accepted until June 13. (Photo: Christie M. Farriella for the New York Daily News)

Queens

The new plan to control bird strikes near Kennedy Airport flies in the face of a multimillion dollar federal effort to restore nearby wetland habitats for migratory birds, critics say.

Under the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s proposal, Wildlife Services staffers at the Queens airport would be authorized to kill a half-dozen birds within a five-mile radius of JFK, according to the New York Daily News.

The program, proposed to combat the growing number of potentially deadly bird strikes, has drawn the ire of conservationists and animal rights groups, who say it’s uncertain how culling the population will effect other species in the sensitive area.

“Would someone say we were going to kill every bear in Yellowstone?” asked Ida Sanoff, chair of the conservation group consortium Natural Resources Protective Association.

The plan would enable Wildlife Services at JFK to enter the Gateway National Recreation Area and kill all Canada geese, mute swans, double-crested cormorants, blackbirds, crows, rock pigeons and European starlings.

Proponents of the culling point to Federal Aviation Administration statistics that show 257 bird strikes at JFK last year compared with only 127 in 2005.

The most recent bird strike forced an emergency landing in Westchester April 24th. Environmentalists and animal rights groups have repeatedly pointed out that these plans target resident birds and not migratory ones which are generally involved in area aviation accidents. (Image: NBC New York)

Environmentalists say while there’s a need for safety at the massive airport, they think the measures outlined need to be examined more carefully.

“I understand the need to manage some of these species, but I would like to see an equal amount of effort put into preservation,” said Don Riepe, director of the local chapter of American Littoral Society and a member of the airport’s bird taskforce.

U.S. Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand has proposed legislation that would bypass the environmental impact review process for the plan and allow the USDA to kill all Canada geese within a 5-mile radius of the airport during their molting season this summer.

Gillibrand, the USDA and Gateway, which helped craft the plan, have all said such measures are needed to ensure safe airways.

“We can take steps necessary to protect millions of air passengers every day while preserving the natural beauty of this national park for future generations,” the senator said in a statement.

Public comments will be accepted until June 13.

CANADA GEESE: The largest of the native waterfowl in Jamaica Bay, Canada geese are considered one of the biggest threats to planes landing and embarking from nearby Kennedy Airport. They feed mostly on grass and can be seen grazing on lawns and golf courses. They are both large — male geese can weigh up to 10 pounds — and abundant.

MUTE SWANS: A nonnative species, mute swans were first introduced to the Northeast coast from Europe in the 1800s. They are beautiful but aggressive birds that can cause damage to local ecosystems. A male swan can weigh up to 25 pounds.

DOUBLE-CRESTED CORMORANTS: This black fish-eating bird nests on islands in the New York harbor. The population of the native species has remained relatively small and stable in New York. They can grow to almost three feet tall.

BLACKBIRDS: The red-winged blackbird is one of the most common small birds that nest in marshes. A single blackbird would likely not do much damage to an airplane, though they tend to congregate in flocks during the winter. The tiny bird can weigh just a few ounces.

EUROPEAN STARLING: This bird was first introduced to America in Central Park in the 1800s. They are urban birds that are found in just about every city habitat and are most abundant in city parks. Most grow to between 7.5 and 9 inches tall and weigh between 2 and 3.5 ounces.

CROWS: These native New York birds can flock in large numbers. Their numbers are recovering after the population declined due to West Nile virus in the 1990s.

ROCK PIGEONS: The familiar pigeon, rock pigeons pose a risk to planes because they can form large flocks. They tend to congregate in places where they are fed by people.

Read More:

USDA bird-strike prevention plan would cull half-dozen bird species in Jamaica Bay Plan could have a ripple effect in sensitive Gateway National Recreation Area

New York Daily News - May 26, 2012 - By Vera Chinese

Critics: Bird-Culling Plan Near JFK Goes Too Far Environmentalists say the plan to kill a half-dozen bird species near Kennedy Airport in order to reduce bird strikes on planes need to be examined more carefully

WNBC - May 27, 2012