Article by Will Poston, based off of the 2019 Waterfowl Population Status Survey by the USFWS
Light Goose photos courtesy of Tom Magee of @teardrop_outdoors
Light Geese
Waterfowlers often exhibit what might be interpreted as an oxymoronic mindset about snow (light) geese. As hunter-conservationists we boast that as we kill snow geese, we are protecting the Northern tundra- where the birds return to in Spring to breed and nest. However, when we hear about a poor hatch of juvenile light geese, we get frustrated with the impending lack of the ‘more easily’ hunted juvy birds. It’s a funny thing to hear a guy talk about how we are out there ‘saving the tundra’ by shooting triple digits of light geese on a hunt, then the next year hear from the same people complaints about poor hatches and lower harvest numbers due to a lack of more-easily hunted juvenile birds.
So on one hand we have a healthier Northern tundra (breeding grounds) that can sustain a healthy population of light geese, leading to hunts of relatively lower harvest numbers; and on the other hand an over-population number of birds in the Northern tundra systematically damaging their breeding and nesting grounds, but leading to better snow goose hunts and higher harvest numbers. Pick your poison, as you can’t have it both way- for the most part.
When the annual Waterfowl Population Status and Survey report is released every August, we can get an idea of what we might expect for numbers of geese to come into the decoys the following hunting season. It is generally a fairly accurate report, but the same can be said about the weatherman. Sometimes the forecast calls for sunny and 75 degree weather, only for a quarter inch of rain to fall and the next thing you know, you’re changing into boots and out of flip flops.
It all starts up North in the breeding grounds, these same areas we try to ‘defend’ from the snow geese as conservationists by harvesting them on their way South in Fall and Winter, and on their way back North in Spring. These abundant and wily birds are comprised of three different species of light geese; lesser snow geese, greater snow geese, and ross’s geese. Lesser snow geese can be classified into three ‘different populations’ by separating them by their breeding grounds; the Mid-continent population, the Wrangel Island population, and the Pacific Flyway population (which also winters alongside many Ross’ geese). Ross’s geese are typically mixed in with the Lesser Snow geese and not differentiated in Midwinter surveys. Greater Snow Geese are found in the Atlantic Flyway. Greater Snow Geese are slightly larger than Lesser Snow geese and typically only found in the white phase.
Report Breakdown
MCP Lesser Snow Geese
The largest breeding population of Light Geese is the Mid-continent Population (MCP) comprised of mainly Lesser Snow Geese, which nest from Banks Island in the west to Baffin Island in the East Arctic. These Snow Geese Winter in the Central and Mississippi flyways. Biologists reported good early breeding conditions for many of these Arctic Islands like Baffin Island on the Eastern area of their range, but below-average conditions for Banks Island on the Western range.
Overall, the MCP snow geese population is down 9% from the 2018 average, with an estimate of just over 12 Million Lesser Snow Geese. This estimate places the 2019 population down 3% on the 10-trend.
WA and WI Lesser Snow Geese
You Pacific Flyway light goose hunters will generally experience Western Arctic (WA) and Wrangel Island (WI) Lesser snow geese as well as Ross Geese. WA Lesser Snow Geese nest on Banks Island for the most part and have smaller breeding colonies around the coast of the NW Territories and Alaska’s Arctic Coastal Plain. This population of Snow Geese winter in Central and Western California and the Western reaches of the Central Flyway. WI Lesser Snow Geese nest on Wrangel Island in Russia and Winter in the Skagit-Fraser River Deltas of British Columbia and Washington and in Northern and Central California. These populations generally mix as the migration progresses. The breeding conditions for this Lesser Snow Goose population were good on Wrangel Island, average in Northern Alaska, and below-average on Banks Island. Ross’s Geese have seen a downward trend over the last few years and their populations are reported more thoroughly following this report so an update will be provided at a later time.
WI lesser snow geese numbers are significantly up around 45% up from 2018 estimates. This puts the population at about 442,000 strong, leaving this population up 12% from the 10-year trend.
Greater Snow Geese (Atlantic Flyway)
Atlantic Flyway hunters enjoy the Greater Snow Goose, which nest on Islands in the North Eastern regions of Canada’s Arctic. Greater Snow Geese will winter on the Atlantic Coast from New Jersey to North Carolina. Breeding conditions for this population were “generally average of good,” despite above average Spring rain.
However, Greater snow geese were estimated to be at 714,000, which is down 19% from 2018, and down 2% from the 10-year trend.
So for this upcoming season, Light Goose hunters can generally expect to see less birds, with some exceptions. The Pacific Flyway can expect better than average Light Goose hunting, as both Pacific Flyway Light Geese and Wrangel Island Lesser Snow Geese are up 12% and 7% from their respective 10-year trends. The remaining populations of Light Geese are down from both 2018 numbers and when looking at 10-year trends. So while these flyways will undoubtedly still have great hunts and you’ll find yourself under tornados of snow geese, hunters will most likely have to continue to work for it, as Light Geese numbers are overall slightly down. However, expect a similar number of juvenile birds this year as last.
