For Spring 2020 Truesdale Lake applied for and received a Fish and Wildlife Services permit for egg oiling. The permit number is FWS RCGR #13757A.

For more information on egg oiling and the purpose of it, please read this post and this page on the lake website.

Status

There are three islands on the lake. From the north to the south they are: Waxwing Island, Ant Island, and Pirate Island. These are shown on the chart below. Geese tend to nest on the islands because of the protection afforded from predators such as raccoons, foxes, coyotes, and mink.

Pirate Island Nests – First Visit

On March 26, a survey of Pirate Island was done and found three goose nests (N1, N2, N3) on the island.

• N1 southeast part of island. 8 eggs. Oiled and marked all 8.
• N2 southwest part of island. 4 eggs. Oiled and marked all 4.
• N3 northwest part of island. 6 eggs. Oiled and marked all 6.

3/26 – Total eggs oiled on Pirate Island – 18

Waxwing Island Nests – First Visit

March 28 survey, One nest noted.

• N4 northwest part of island with five (5) eggs. Oiled and marked all 5.

3/28 – Total eggs oiled on Waxwing Island – 5

Ant Island Nests – First Visit

April 4 survey, one nest noted.

• N5 north tip of island with five (5) eggs. Oiled and marked all 5.

4/4 – Total eggs oiled on Ant Island – 5

Waxwing Island Nests – Second Visit

April 4: Three nests noted, one N4 noted prior, N6, N7 are new nests.

• N4 (northwest) had six (6) eggs, up from 5 in prior visit. Oiled and marked all six.
• N6 southeast end of island, six (6) eggs. Oiled and marked all six.
• N7 center of island, seven (7) eggs. Oiled and marked all seven.

4/4 – Total eggs oiled on Waxwing Island – 19

Pirate Island Nests – Second Visit

April 5: four goose nests (existing N1, N2, N3, plus new N8) noted on the island.

• N1 southeast part of island. 7 eggs. Oiled and marked all 7.
• N2 southwest part of island. 5 eggs. Oiled and marked all 5.
• N3 northwest part of island. 6 eggs. Oiled and marked all 6.
• N8 north-center part of island. 4 eggs (3 were cold). Oiled and marked all 4.

4/5 – Total eggs oiled on Pirate Island – 22

We will continue to monitor the islands and track any changes.

Wrap

What we want to happen: The goal is to have as few goslings as possible — and to have the nesting geese pairs have a failed nesting. When there are no goslings, the geese leave the lake and migrate north to the Canadian tundra as a pair and tend not to return to the site of the failed nesting in future years.

This is what Canada geese did for thousands of years before we cut down forests and created lawns and golf courses that reminded them of the tundra and made them feel at home. We are trying to restore their natural migration patterns back to Canada.

What we don’t want to happen: If the goslings hatch, then the goose (female) and gander (male) shed their flight feathers and become residents of Truesdale Lake for the summer while their goslings grow and mature into adults capable of flight. If there are enough goslings hatched, even nesting pairs who fail to hatch any of their own eggs will shed their flight feathers and join the resident flock.