Killed 150 Canada geese in one day

Colorado Cowboy

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Jun 8, 2011
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I'll be quite blunt.....seems like a bit much to me. 150 birds......what did you guys do with them? I count 10 hunters, that's 15 each, the limit here is 2 per day. I am a waterfowl hunter and it just seems like something I wouldn't brag about....just my opinion.
 
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Prerylyon

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Apr 25, 2016
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It could be a management/population control hunt someplace. I'm not up on the actual bag limits, but I know around here the city made it a lot easier to hunt Canada geese by opening up more ground to hunters and working that with the DNR and feds. Lots of places in town here are way overpopulated with local Canadas making a mess of things. Hopefully these geese weren't poached and legal bag and possession limits were adhered to.

As long as laws are followed, the species population can sustain it (sound conservation), and the meat isn't wasted, I have no issues with a matanza.

Commercial fisherman do a similar deal with carp here after ice out. The carp gets sold smoked (quite tasty actually) or shipped to ethnic markets where it commands a premium, while at the same time the carp are culled. I realize a carp isn't a Canada goose, but its a similar concept.

I was curious so I checked our regs:

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&source=web&rct=j&url=https://www.iowadnr.gov/Portals/idnr/uploads/Hunting/waterfowl_dates.pdf&ved=2ahUKEwiYgZWPsqjlAhVGUK0KHX2HBIEQFjAAegQIARAB&usg=AOvVaw1ZPRvLNf4ONOCIMGSvYRXs&cshid=1571490776159


We had an early Canada goose season here from Sep 1-9 where the daily limit was 5. That would be 30 guys under those regs. I guess it's possible?
 
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Slugz

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Oct 12, 2014
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Sept NY Canada goose season in most zones is 15 per day with a 3 x possession limit. I believe just like the snows ruining nesting areas up in the Artic Tundra....One could guess the Canada goose in the Eastern flyway is doing the same thing to Baffin Island area ( I think thats the nesting spot).......and another little known fact......hazards to airplanes/aircraft strikes......second to Turkey vultures they cause the most damage in the heavily congested East Coast flight corridor. Doesn't surprise me you can whack 15 a day.
 
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mnhoundman

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Oct 25, 2012
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That's a pile for sure!
Few guys around here shoot the sheet out of them, get hundreds. They make brats, they are pretty good to.
 
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buckbull

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Jun 20, 2011
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I know a guy that lives for waterfowl hunting and goes to Canada every year for a couple weeks (i think Saskatchewan) . Very liberal limits on ducks and geese compared to where we live. Especially liberal when it comes to geese. He says the geese are tearing up habitat based on the way they eat. Something about pulling the entire plant out by the roots. I'm not a waterfowler so excuse my ignorance if I have it wrong.
 
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hutty

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Oct 17, 2017
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Nice shoot. Geese on the east coast a broken into two populations (resident birds and Atlantic population -AP). Resident birds have a more liberal big limit and the season is early when AP birds are still in Canada and have not yet begun to migrate. AP birds this year is a very restrictive season with states in the flyway either having a 1 or 2 bird limit.
 

mallardsx2

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Jul 8, 2015
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I remember when PA did this. They went to an 8 bird limit to kill off the resident geese.

Then they allowed you to start hunting in groups larger than 6....

Then the black hoodie armies started showing up at 3:00AM in the fields with 10 people they didn't tell the farmers where gonna be with them and killing 50-100 birds a day with their massive groups pissing off every farmer in the area.

Then permission was almost impossible to get because they had pissed everyone off...

Now it is a 1 bird limit and permission is impossible to get and the goose population in western PA isnt a fraction of what it used to be.

You'll all see. Just give it a couple years.

Congrats on a good shoot but heed my statements above. Trust me.
 

Winchester

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Mar 27, 2014
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Woodland Park, Colorado
I'll be quite blunt.....seems like a bit much to me. 150 birds......what did you guys do with them? I count 10 hunters, that's 15 each, the limit here is 2 per day. I am a waterfowl hunter and it just seems like something I wouldn't brag about....just my opinion.
I gotta agree with CC on this one.
My initial impression was, hmmmm, that seems excessive.
Just my opinion.
 

Fink

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Apr 7, 2011
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West Side, MoMo
Looks like a pretty good goose shoot to me. If the law allows it, and you use the birds you shoot, I say more power to ya.
I don't think many people realize the effort it takes to put together a 10+ man shoot, or just how fun they can be.. I also think people fail to understand the local dynamics of specific micro populations, but, I'm guessing the NY dept of wildlife probably has a better handle on it than some dudes on the internets.
Good work.
 

THelms

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Staff member
Legal? Nice work!

Snack sticks, brats, summer sausage, breakfast sausage, smoked goose breast, pate... you name it. When you start getting creative goose breast doesn't go far. That many geese renders about the same amount of meat as a couple cow elk and that's figuring 3lbs. of meat per bird which is probably generous so realistically you're looking at more like 250-300 lbs. of meat, one elk and I don't know anybody who would consider one solitary elk to be excessive... let's be a bit careful before we start pointing fingers, we're all on the same team.
 

mallardsx2

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Jul 8, 2015
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Right, right...I understand that....and we are all on the same team.

BUT, if they raised the elk limit to decimate the herds to the point of not seeing any elk and limiting opportunity for all hunters to the point that they only let you shoot an elk every 5 years instead of every year would you then consider it excessive harvest?

Hmmmmm....I bet people would be singing a different tune then.

Sure its fun to waste away and show your huge harvests while the good times last. But a LOT of damage can be done in a short amount of time when it comes to waterfowl. I know this because I have seen the effects of this first hand. Not just with Geese but with the Deer in PA as well. The same people doing all the killing where the same people complaining years later. Like I told my buddy "You can be a part of this now but you'll regret it later" He chose to be a part of the massacre of both deer and geese (got the pictures to prove it...), I did not.

Food (Goose sticks) for thought.
 
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Winchester

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I understand what you guys are saying and I agree we're all on the same team … and I'm ok with all that.
I guess what struck me as excessive was lining all the geese up and taking the photo.
With so many anti-hunters out there we all have to be ambassadors for hunting these days, and I don't think this type of massive kill photo represents our sport very well and we'd get hammered if this were posted on social media.
And yes I get this isn't social media and yes I take photos of stuff I harvest.
I just worry about perceptions these days and I think we all have to be very careful.
Just my opinion, not pointing fingers at all.
 

mallardsx2

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The photo doesn't bother me so much. Its more big picture of their future resident populations that concerns me.
 
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Shane13

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Aug 8, 2012
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Hawley, Texas
Congrats! Looks like a lot of fun to me.

I wonder what's "worse".... Killing 15/day one day, or killing 2/day every day for a week? ;)
 

Winchester

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Mar 27, 2014
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Woodland Park, Colorado
No difference at all, but it matters how you present it to the public.;)
Hunters are struggling with public relations … we have to be cognizant of the image we're projecting.
 

Shane13

Active Member
Aug 8, 2012
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Hawley, Texas
I understand presentation, and I agree. I hate to see pics of nasty head shots, bloody animals not cleaned up, guts hanging out, etc. Shows a lack of respect for the animal. I don't see anything like that in this one, but that's just me. They weren't over the legal limit, and there's nothing distasteful about the photo (in my opinion). I don't think most non-hunters would have a problem with this one either. ANTI-hunters will, whether it's 1 goose or 150. Not much we can do about them though.
 

Winchester

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Woodland Park, Colorado
Thanks Shane. I have no issues with your perspective. I agree ANTI-hunters will have a problem with most things we do, that's why I believe we must be cautious about giving them ammo (pun intended) like the photos you mention. I appreciate the respectful exchange of ideas/opinions. That's one of the things I like about this forum.
 
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