Gone Goose

The Momma goose is gone. I noticed this morning at 3:30am that there was no alert head and neck keeping tabs on me as I loaded my things into the taxi. I walked over to make sure she wasn't still there, but dead or dying. She was nowhere in sight.




The storm yesterday dropped quite a lot of water, and there was much lightning and thunder, but nothing violent beyond the torrents of rain. Maybe she had finally had enough sitting through the extremes of weather, or the rain yesterday flushed her out to find a sheltering tree somewhere.




The eggs — of which there appear to be only two — are broken and empty, so I wonder if a dog or some other predator came along and scared her off the nest, to abandon the eggs to hungry jaws. I know I'm a big sap, but I hope she's okay. And there's absolutely no way I'll ever know.



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Fuzzballs

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Goose Island

Since early spring I have seen this goose every morning, just about 50 feet from where I park the taxi at home. Silhouetted against the lighted parking lot of the building across the way, I see her skinny neck and her bulbous head as she keeps a wary eye on me while I prepare for my day.

I feel kind of bad for her; all the other geese I see — at least those that are paired up — already have their gaggles of babies waddling after them. I have only ever seen this one alone. I assume she's sitting on eggs, but I have a feeling they'll never hatch.



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BACKDATED: Territorial

a.k.a. Swans Are Badass Mofos!








This drama unfolded this evening as I arrived home from work. This little pond next to my building doesn't strike me as anything fancy, but apparently the waterfowl find it very worthy of possession. Through the sequence of photos above it is clear that the swan is not happy with the Canada Goose in his water, and he pursues him determinedly until the goose leaves the pond.

I thought it was all over and put away my camera, but afterward the swan chased the goose onto land and took a beak-swipe at him. The goose opted for less hostile waters and flew off.



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