James A. Cooper, Department of Fisheries and Wildlife, College of Natural Resources,
University of Minnesota, St. Paul, MN 55108
Abstract: This paper describes the effectiveness of efforts to reduce the Canada goose (Branta canadensis) population at the St. Paul-Minneapolis International Airport in Minnesota. Introduced to the area in the 1950s, geese began using the wetlands and grass adjacent the runways in 1973. From 1980 to 1984, four goose strikes were recorded and goose flights through the operations airspace were common from September to November. Population control experiments began in June, 1984 when flightless goose concentrations within 16 km of the airport were captured and the adults neckbanded. Marker observations and counts at the airport that fall indicated a minimum of 300 birds from 7 of 11 banding locations were using the airport. Geese at these locations were drive-trapped and shipping to distance locations from 1985 to 1994. Capture efficacy ranged from 82 to 99%. The number of geese observed from the air traffic control tower during September-November was 48%, 67%, and 88% below the 1984 level in 1985-87, respectively. One goose strike occurred in 1985 and none since, while the goose population in unmanaged locations grew more than 50% during this period. The results of this study indicates that reducing breeding populations of Canada geese that use an airport can significantly reduce aircraft strikes.