July 2021

If you’ve spent any time around our pond and the trail that goes around it (and we hope you have), you’ve likely seen the many Canadian Geese that make it their home. Given how active they are at this time of year, we thought we’d share four fun facts you may not know about the breed, as well as a few goose jokes.

The Basics

Canada geese typically weigh 10-14 pounds and can have a wing spread of up to 5 feet. They’re known for their distinctive “honks” when flying. The female is called goose and the male is a gander. Their babies are called goslings and a group of guess is a flock.

Mating for Life

Canada geese find mates when they’re around two years old, and pairs stay together for the rest of their lives (which on average is 24 years). They usually pick partners that are similar to their own body size.

“V” for Efficiency

They usually fly in a large V-shaped formation, with one bird in the lead and the others trailing behind it in two lines. They do this because the air flow created by each goose means less air resistance for the goose behind it. Over the course of their flight, they rotate who is in the lead and who can lay back and benefit from the others’ efforts.

Quick Learners

Goslings develop and learn very quickly. Within just 24 hours of being born they learn to swim and can dive as much as 40 feet under water. They’ve typically learned to fly by two months old.

Canadian Geese Jokes

• I have some geese for sale. Let me know if you want to take a gander!
• If a very friendly person is called a “people person,” that makes a friendly goose a “geese goose.”
• How do you get down from an elephant? You can’t – you get down from a goose!