Featured Letter: Canada geese are the problem, not swans

To the editor:

Wondering why the DEC is expending so many resources and spending so much money to eradicate the problems posed by the mute swan when the real problem is the Canada goose.

There are about 2,200 mute swans in the entire state, according to the DEC. At 4 p.m. on Jan. 20, while conducting our area of the NYS Winter Waterfowl Census, we counted close to that number (1,970 ) flying in and landing on the fields along Oregon Road in Mattituck. My wife, Linda, and I counted 2,612 Canada geese in this one day alone.

Yes, the swan is aggressive in defending its nest; so is the Canada goose. Both pose a threat to aircraft, with Canada geese being by far the greater danger. When it comes to polluting the environment and posing a threat to shellfishing, I would suggest that 2,200 swans are the least of your problems. What is the DEC plan to deal with the exploding problem of the Canada goose? Making a big media splash about the mute swan is just “window dressing” and accomplishes nothing about the real problem while leading the public to think the DEC is proactive in protecting them.

Sounds like make-do work to me and not reality based.

Rick Kedenburg, Peconic