Greater Snow Goose Population Monitoring

Greater Snow Geese are back at the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, Fall 2012

Since 1978, the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area (NWA) has witnessed a spectacular increase in the Greater Snow Goose population. It serves as a staging area for more than one million Greater Snow Geese on their biyearly journeys between the Atlantic Coast and the Far North. The population was only about 3 000 birds at the beginning of the century, and the Cap Tourmente NWA was created to ensure this species’ survival. During their fall migration, the Greater Snow Geese stop off in the vicinity of the Wildlife Area, where they feed on American Bulrush rhizomes in the marsh and grain in the fields.

The Canadian Wildlife Service publishes regularly a graph illustrating the number of Greater Snow Geese in the Cap Tourmente NWA for the duration of their fall stay. Until now, three Greater Snow Goose survey have been conducted at Cap Tourmente NWA, this year. 

Graph 1 : Histogram presenting the number of Greater Snow Geese
at Cap Tourmente NWA , Fall 2012
(Data for this graph are available in table form below)

At high tide, Greater Snow Geese are somtimes nearer to the shore and more numerous in the fields; observation is thus much easier (tide tables).

The Greater Snow Goose surveys done at Cap Tourmente NWA over the last three falls show a peak abundance around mid-October.  Up to 66 500 Greater Snow Geese were counted in 2010.

Graph 2 : Number of Greater Snow Geese
at Cap Tourmente NWA for last 3 falls (2009-2011)
(Data for this graph are available in table form below)