I remember the first time I visited Prospect Park in Brooklyn.
Friends invited me one Sunday for brunch at their home and a walk in the park.
It was a warm, sunny day in late June of 2010.
As soon as we entered the crowded park, the smoke from Barbeques was enough to choke and knock one over. Garbage was overflowing in the cans and much of it littered the grass and pedestrian paths.
"Yes," my friends said. "The Barbeques are unsightly and smelly. Let's walk to a different area. There are many geese and ducks here."
We walked to the lake, where, as promised, there were many beautiful geese, ducks and swans.
Children and people were hand-feeding the tame birds who walked right up to them. -- Especially, the geese and swans. I whipped out my camera and took photos.
The beautiful wildlife was indeed, the highlight of the park. And it was wonderful to see so many people positively interacting with them.
Later walking through some of the park lawns, it was shocking to note the grass completely littered with discarded chicken bones.
"How can you walk your two dogs through here?" I asked. "Don't they try to grab the chicken bones?"
"Oh, we don't walk our dogs on the grass," my friends laughed. "We wouldn't dare!"
Though I did not want to insult my friends or their local park, I could not help but think that with the exception of the geese, ducks and swans, Prospect Park was the ugliest park I had ever seen.
I could not wait to leave it and vowed to never return.
But, of course I have returned to Prospect Park several times since. -- To attend rallies held to protest the massacre of the geese I had so joyously viewed that day.
Exactly two weeks following my visit, all 368 geese and their goslings were rounded up by the USDA one Thursday morning in early July, trucked to Kennedy Airport and gassed.
It was unbelievable and ironic to me both then and now that of all the truly ugly sights and occurrences at Prospect Park, the thing that park and government officials chose to target and destroy was one of the few elements of beauty -- the park's Canada geese!
Since that time, I have learned a great deal more about Prospect Park.
I have learned that it has been a repeated site for animal slaughters, including mutilated chickens and goats whose remains have been discarded and scattered around the park.
In the spring of 2010, a goose was shot with an arrow at Prospect Park and walked around for several weeks with the arrow sticking out of his neck. Park Rangers were unable to capture the injured gander. But, two weeks after removing the arrow himself, "Target" was rounded up and killed by USDA along with the other 367 Prospect Park geese.
"Mercy" existed for NO geese at Prospect Park -- even a "celebrity" goose.
I have learned that dozens of Prospect Park animals, including swans, cygnets, geese, a cormorant and even turtles have been continually ensnared in fishing lines and required rescue.
And I have learned over the past few days that harassment is being conducted on the mostly migratory Canada geese attempting to rest and gather strength at Prospect Park over the winter months.
According to the Prospect Park Days blog, the harassment is apparently occurring daily.
I am reminded of my personal experience with goose harassment at Central Park in December of 2010 and my blog entries during that period:
"Geese Relief" the agency then employed by Central Park Conservancy for goose harassment was immediately fired when the Conservancy learned that canister blasts were used. Geese Relief was also terminated for the fact of scaring other birds away, including the shovelers and one swan.
"They are supposed to immediately cease operations if scaring off other birds." a Central Park Conservancy official told me at the time.
According to the "Prospect Park Days" blog today, the swan family at Prospect Park appears to be broken up now and in different areas.
One cannot prove that the disbursement of the swans is due to the goose harassment currently being conducted at Prospect Park. But it is suspicious, especially in light of what occurred at Central Park in 2010.
It is not clear why Prospect Park would elect to conduct harassment on the birds in the middle of January when human use is at a minimum and most of the geese are temporary.
Obviously, they are not in communication with Central Park Conservancy or CP Park Rangers.
A Central Park Ranger told me in 2010 that harassment of geese in winter was a "waste of resources" considering most of the geese were migratory and would return in spring to Canada and Nova Scotia.
I suspect that the Prospect Park Alliance has been fed a "sales pitch" by Goosebusters.
As recently noted in this journal, many "goose harassment" companies have overstepped the bounds of what is truthful and humane in order to promote and sell their services.
I can still recall vividly the borderline sadistic grin on the face of the woman from Geese Relief in Dec of 2010. It was as through she got some perverse pleasure from terrifying all the birds on a mostly frozen lake.
In their "Wildlife Management Plan" the Prospect Park Alliance states harassment to begin in January "just before the breeding season."
Geese don't begin to "breed" until late March or early April.
Where is the Alliance getting their information?
Apparently from Goosebusters.
The real lunacy and injustice in all this is that at a time the geese should be resting up and reserving energy for the challenge of spring migrations, they are instead being harassed on a daily basis and continually stressed.
That will seriously deplete their condition for the stresses of migration and could actually result in more geese being forced to stay in NY, rather than migrate in late Feb or early March as would be normal. This is especially true if the weather should change and become suddenly hostile and cold as is expected during the next week.
I obviously don't know the rationalizations or sources for this pointless, cruel and wasteful exercise to harass birds in winter on the part of the Prospect Park Alliance.
I just have to hope it doesn't spread to Central Park like some infectious, fatal disease.
"Goose-a-phobia" spreading all over NYC and the country.
Or, perhaps it simply is that the legacy of Prospect Park is endless and senseless animal cruelty.
I hope I never have to return to it and I hope Prospect Park's shameful, disgraceful legacy doesn't spread to other NYC parks -- especially, Central Park. -- PCA
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