strange canadian goose behavior

mtair123 · 12-10-2011, 03:30 AM

has anyone ever witnessed a flock of geese flying pretty high just stop flapping and fall from the sky , like everyone of them just died mid air , then drop a couple hundred feet then recompose themself and land in the water normally , ive seen it twice on 2 different bodies of water ?

NEK · 12-10-2011, 09:51 AM

Yes - it's pretty common behavior when they want to land on a body of water where there are hunters in the area around it. If they would come in low like they do in the summer, they would be in range of the guns, so they quickly learn to come in high and then dump air and drop straight down and stay out of hunters range. It's awesome to watch aint it? I've seen it many times and you never get tired of watching them do that.

JW · 12-10-2011, 10:41 AM

Its fun to see them dump the air out of their wings and drop a huge distance.....

Not many get to see that...

JW

mtair123 · 12-10-2011, 04:09 PM

yeah it is quite the sight. it just didnt make sense , thanks guys

Doc E · 12-11-2011, 05:55 PM

Common behavior ---- BUT, they are Canada Geese, not Canadian Geese

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mtair123 · 12-12-2011, 02:26 AM

no, im pretty sure they were from canada, the canada geese dont leave the golf courses here

NEK · 12-12-2011, 04:25 AM

Sometimes - new birds - either migrating - or coming in on a storm front will do that. They will be real tired from the long flight and I have had them do it right over the lake I was hunting - dumping air and then make one big circle down wind and come in to the set -up. That is an unforgettable- heart stopping experience for any waterfowl hunter. Most times - when they do that - I didn't shoot - because after the first time you shoot one of those new birds like that, you realize how skinny they are. They lose a lot of fat on those long migration flights and there isn't much but skin and bone on them till they have been around and fed in the grain fields for a week or so. I've actually had them come in tired like that and the whole flock would put heads under wings and go to sleep. It's really neat to see.

MinnFinn · 12-13-2011, 03:58 PM

They're dumping air from under their wings to lose altitude faster. They do this usually in higher winds when the wind naturally give them more lift than needed and to get down quicker to water.