Flying through a Fowl Situation
Birds are beautiful, graceful and melodic. They give a sense of being close to nature and add to the feel of our community. But too much of any one thing is never good. Whether it’s a trail of droppings, territorial aggression or destructive nesting and feeding patterns, birds can make life more expensive and a little more difficult or unpleasant for our community, maintenance crews and managers.
With plenty of open space, feeding areas and comfortable nesting sites free from natural predators, our community creates a haven for an avian population. Geese and ducks—attracted to the lakes and ponds and relative safety of the surroundings—tend to be the worst culprit.
There’s an environmentally safe and effective way of living with the winged visitors and decreasing a nuisance in our community. One of the most important steps is a no-feeding policy.
According to GeesePeace (www.geesepeace.org), a nationally-recognized non-profit dedicated to growing geese education and outreach programs, geese come to an area for two reasons: the safety provided by a lake/pond and the abundance of planted grass kept short for them by frequent mowing.
Geese are encouraged to stay in our community or visit—often congregating in the common areas—when they are fed popcorn or bread. In addition, feeding geese human food is unhealthy and causes them to be aggressive.
During the winters, geese have plenty of resources to find food. They don’t need large amounts of corn or other feed when the ground is covered with snow. They’ll fly to warmer areas to find more suitable feeding grounds. We don’t want to remove all of the birds in our community; we simply want to make the numbers more manageable. A no-feeding policy is an important first step.
With your cooperation, we’ll be able to fly through this fowl situation.
Notice:! This could be used for something to stand out - such as an annoucement of some sort.
Free Mosquito Abatement Program
Ada County offers free* mosquito abatement. If you are having an outdoor party you can call 208.577.4646 24 hours in advance and they will "fog" your yard. A fogging will last one week. Visit their website for more information. *Well, sort of free. It's some of our property tax money at work.
