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Wait, what? Can you elaborate on the part about the coyotes? You're saying they have an annual ritual of infanticide? That's. Horrifying. I wonder if this part
by maxbond 4y ago
Wait, what? Can you elaborate on the part about the coyotes?
You're saying they have an annual ritual of infanticide? That's. Horrifying. I wonder if this particular flock suffered some kind of trauma.
- quesera 4y agoNothing so complicated. The geese are just compelled by nature to walk into the woods with their goslings shortly after hatching. And coyotes have their own habits, of course. There's a reason geese lay so many eggs. If they all survived, the population would quadruple every year. The average Canada goose lives for about 20 years in the wild, so if you think about it... for population to remain steady, more than 99% of goslings have to die. Still, every year I root for the goslings. Coyotes have plenty of other things to eat. None so convenient and tasty, perhaps.
- maxbond 4y agoBizarre! Thanks for elaborating. Predation and parasitism are both so fascinating.
- lapetitejort 4y agoVery interesting. We had woods around my geese's nesting area. I'm not sure if we had coyotes (wouldn't be surprised if I never saw them). We did have ponds with the occasional alligator. That might be enough to thin the flock.
- maxbond 4y agoI don't know about coywolves, but if you live near coyotes, you'll hear them if you don't see them.