The Four Miracle Prospect Park Goslings appear now to have dwindled to a precious three.
There is a very strong possibility that the missing gosling was in some way deformed and/or mildly retarded as a result of the "egg addling" technique used by the current goose management program implemented by the Prospect Park Alliance.
The park staff – as trained by the Humane Society – performs an extremely aggressive technique called "egg addling." Workers douse any viable egg found in the park with corn oil, depriving the emerging fetus of oxygen – literally suffocating it.
If there is a heavy downpour or some other natural accident that removes the oil, the bird will continue to develop. There is, however, the risk that any bird born after receiving this treatment might be in some way deformed or slightly retarded. This may have been the case with our missing gosling.
We are not yet certain whether the remaining three are robust and healthy or also compromised. If so, then a big "thanks" to everyone at the Alliance.
According to the Prospect Park Alliance's own website:
In September of 2010 Prospect Park formed a Wildlife Management Advisory Committee consisting of professionals involved with animal welfare, education, science and urban park management and local community representatives.
In November of 2010 the Park drafted a Canada Goose Management Plan based on specific recommendations from the Committee. The aim of this Plan is to maintain the goose population at levels that will facilitate cleaner shorelines and water, support a diverse array of waterfowl within Prospect Park’s 585 acres, and potentially keep the population of Canada Geese in the Park low enough to avoid intervention by federal agencies.
While the Prospect Park Alliance is almost hysterical about its wildlife and states its interest in facilitating "cleaner shorelines and water" – it seems to consistently neglect and turn a blind eye to the constant complaints of over-running and out of control garbage.
And while goose droppings are actually used and sold as fertilizer in many countries, used condoms, empty plastic beverage bottles, paper plates, plastic food containers, cigarette butts and beer cans are not.
If it is true that the PPA's goal was and is to "maintain the goose population," it has failed. There were 467 resident and beloved Canada Geese in our park, gracing our lake. The current number is 15, by my own count. And yet Goose Busters is still being paid to sic border collies and have workers drown their progeny in corn oil.
Please call 311 or the Prospect Park Alliance and ask them (very nicely) to end their contract with Goose Busters. There are 15 geese in the park. Wouldn't that money be better spent cleaning up the enormous amount of garbage that is now festering throughout the park and at the bottom of that lake?
Editor's Note: All Park Slope Patch blog posts are expressly the opinions of the bloggers. They do not reflect the general view point of Park Slope Patch.
