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marius
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The following taken from Channel Baldur, post 3224.
There is another Earth Music which will arrive to these parts soon. It is the annual geese (particularly snow geese) migration. About mid-November marius will head out to Squaw Creek National Wildlife refuge, where at peak migration there can be as many as 350,000 geese. If grace is present, it will be a mildly coolish day.
We hike a half mile out on the dike, sit on the grass and listen. The sound of 350,000 geese honking about is truly a force, but it is nothing compared to the sound of all those wings flying up in unison when something (generally a hungry eagle) spooks geese to the air.
The sound made with the wings is a tremendous roar. First time I took spouse to hear and see this, the geese decided to rise up directly above our heads. Not only is it too loud to speak to each other, but the entire sky is filled with black and white and there is nothing else to see, or hear. Marius looked at spouse to see his reaction and it was as hers ... tears streaming down the face. After the geese settled back into the water, there was no talk for quite a while. Finally spouse said, "I thought you were a bit crazed about bringing me to see a bunch of geese. Now I know."
It makes me cry every year. Cannot explain it. Maybe 350,000+ pairs of wings makes the heart soar and it's so beautiful you can't help but cry? Don't know.
If interested, the first site below is a few good pics. The second site has a video. You have to scroll down the page to access video. It is of spring migration (over a million geese). The best parts of the video are half way through to the end. Enjoy.
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1213918/Snow-geese-stopover-wildlife-refuge-en- route-wintering-grounds.html
http://www.extremeinstability.com/09squawcreek.htm
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marius
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And, will just answer you now. No, the geese do not poop on you when they fly overhead! Wish the man who took all the beautiful video footage did not mention, right at the start, a worry about geese poop. Have watched these migrations over thirty years and the geese have always had impeccable manners!
Read that they poop before taking to flight as this lessens the load. Also, they poop quite a bit when eating in the winter wheat fields that surround the refuge.
The best parts of the video or middle to end. Unfortunately, the recorder did not catch the sound of geese wings roaring as they take flight. Not sure why that is as it's a tremendous sound.
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