A pilot study will discover the impact of different deterrents on anseriformes

In April, the Environmental Board will allow monitored geese hunting in designated fields in Jõgeva, Tartu and Ida-Viru County to investigate the impact of various deterrent measures.In spring, geese migrate from their wintering grounds in central Europe to their breeding grounds for Siberian tundra areas. Over 100,000 Barnacle geese and over 80,000 greater white-fronted geese stay in Estonia during the spring migration to replenish their energy resources both on natural grasslands and on agricultural crops. However, eating grass in the fields of common couch grass, rapeseed and sown cereal grains causes damage to farmers.For the purpose of damage reduction, attempts have been made to scare the birds away from the fields and to direct them to natural grasslands. In order to do so, automatic sound and visual effects devices have been implemented and crops have been treated with bird-deterrent agents. Unfortunately, the birds become accustomed to such control measures and their efficiency is gradually decreasing. Therefore, studies are being carried out whether hunting is a more effective deterrent than the measures currently in place.“Up to this day, spring hunting has not been performed in Estonia for anseriformes, as it is a usual practice in Sweden, Denmark and Germany, for example. Unfortunately, the effect of intimidation hunting has been little studied and it is unclear whether and to which extent it is more effective than other deterrent measures. This year, we are exploring the effects of intimidation hunting on geese in selected fields in selected counties. Hunting is only permitted for those persons who are authorized to participate in the survey. In addition to hunting, there are other deterrent measures, such as firing, to compare the effects of different activities,” said Aimar Rakko, Head of the Environmental Board Office of Hunting and Aquatic Biota.Five types of anseriformes are allowed to be hunted: bean goose, greater white-fronted geese, greylag goose, Barnacle goose and Canada goose. Up to 10 birds can be hunted per field per day. The maximum number of specimens that can be hunted per month across the entire field array is also provided. According to the study, participants need to provide various data on deterrence, including species and numbers hunted.“We thank the farmers and hunters for their willingness to participate in this particular project - without the information they have provided, it would not be possible to conduct the survey,” Aimar Rakko added.The survey is commissioned by the Environmental Board and carried out by OÜ Rewild. The results will be summarized by the end of 2019.More information:Aimar RakkoHead of the Environmental Board Office of Hunting and Aquatic Biotae-mail: aimar.rakko@keskkonnaamet.eetelephone: 5306 9104Sille AderSpokesperson for the Environmental Board e-mail: sille.ader@keskkonnaamet.ee telephone: 5745 0332