Subject: Bainbridge Island Canada Geese
Date: Jun 21 14:39:21 1997
From: "Jon. Anderson and Marty Chaney" - festuca at olywa.net


Hi folks,

Back on Sunday 25 May, I took the kids to Battle Point Park on Bainbridge Island, 4 miles NW of Winslow, Kitsap County, Washington. I observed 2 banded Canada geese (Branta canadensis moffitti); The larger of the two was banded with aluminum band 848-76729; The smaller was banded with 848-76725

The birds' bands were read with binoculars at a distance of about 15 feet as they begged bread crumbs from kids feeding the park Mallards.... These were the only 2 banded geese I noted among about 25 Canadas using a park pond.

In today's mail came the Bird Banding Laboratory's "Certificate of Appreciation" for # 76729. The bird was banded on 6-22-95 near Centralia as an 'adult' (after-hatching-year) male by Gary Oldenburg of the US Dept Agriculture APHIS-Animal Damage Control office in Olympia. I presume #76725 was banded on/at the same time/place, and - from the smaller size - might be a female. We'll find out for certain when the certificate comes in on her.

I'll give Mr Oldenburg a call next week to find out why the birds were banded, if they were part of a relocation project, or were banded to find out where all those Lewis County Canadas get to, or what... Anyway, these birds had moved about 65 miles north from the place where they were banded, and that's kind of interesting for our "resident" Canada geese!

Jon. Anderson
Olympia, Washington
festuca at olywa.net