Wildlife, Fish, and Marine Life Newsletter

Canada Geese Banding Effort

Every year, DEC bands approximately 8,000 migratory game birds including Canada geese, ducks and brant. Staff change banding locations every year to capture and mark a representative sample of geese from across the state.

Staff banded 3,500 Canada geese between mid-June to mid-July. This is when geese molt their flight feathers and are unable to fly. It is an ideal time to capture and band them because they can easily be rounded up into temporary pens. Once captured, staff and volunteers take biological data (i.e., age, sex, and species), attach a uniquely numbered aluminum band, and then release them as quickly as possible.

Canada geese, as well as other birds, are banded to track their movements, survival, productivity, migration patterns, dispersal, and for special research projects. When hunters or the general public encounter a band, they can report their observation. The data from these encounters are vital to setting appropriate hunting regulations each year.

State Lands to Visit: Erwin Wildlife Management Area

Erwin Wildlife Management Area (WMA) is located five miles west of the city of Corning, in New York’s Southern Tier. Erwin WMA was purchased by New York State in 1928, which makes it one of the state’s oldest WMAs. Under DEC management, multiple projects have been completed to improve habitat and public access, including road and trail construction, timber harvests to thin or regenerate areas of the forest, and development of several impoundments.

Nearly 95 percent of the property is forested. It provides exceptional habitat for numerous wildlife species. Several scattered fields and ponds are located on the WMA. Erwin Pond offers opportunities for public fishing. It contains a variety of common warm-water fish species, including largemouth bass, sunfish, chain pickerel and bullhead.

Hunting is one of the most popular activities on Erwin WMA. Visitors can find popular game species, such as black bear, gray squirrel, ruffed grouse, white-tailed deer, and wild turkey. Furbearers, such as bobcat and fisher, also occur here and provide a good opportunity for trapping. Birding is another rewarding activity on the WMA. You can find more information about the Erwin WMA in the August issue of the Conservationist.

Learn More About DEC Fishery Survey Activities

Staff from DEC’s Bureau of Fisheries conduct hundreds of fishery surveys each year to learn more about the status of fish populations in various waters across the state. You can learn more about the results of these surveys by reading the technical briefs completed for each survey.