The Iowa Department of Natural Resources is in the middle of its annual Canada goose banding effort across the state.
Geese that nested and had young are currently flightless, allowing staff and volunteers to capture the waterfowl, collect some demographic information, and place a metal band on their leg before being released.
“This is one of the best sources of information on Canada geese – it allows us to monitor where the birds are captured, where they are recovered, either by hunter or by the general public who can report the band, which provides important estimates for demographic rates, such as survival rates, recovery rates – and that’s really the fine scale information that allows us to manage the population,” said Orrin Jones, state waterfowl biologist with the Iowa DNR.
To learn more about the Canada goose banding project, go to the DNR's YouTube channel