By Lauren Matheny, Lifestyles Editor
The campus gained two new members this spring.
A pair of geese first appeared around campus at the beginning of April. They could be seen walking on the quad in the early morning hours, picking at bugs and squawking to students.
The birds also have provided picturesque photo opportunities, flying past the music center’s glass-plated walls at sunrise, said Gray Leiper, church music/music education senior.
“Nothing is quite as majestic as the two geese flying over Bass out of the rising sun,” Leiper posted on his Facebook page.
Geese are a new addition to many suburban and urban manicured areas. While geese previously needed to fly south for the harsher seasons to find the short grass which they like to nest in, humans have provided manicured lawns, golf courses, airports, and, yes, quads, across the country.
The geese population rose in the middle of the 20th century after the government passed a ban on hunting them outside of specific seasons. The smaller population grew until geese and other migratory birds began to search for new nesting areas and year-round homes, according to allaboutbirds.org.
This explains why the two new resident geese have chosen to make OCU their home – the clean, short grass of the quad.
Dr. Anthony Stancampiano, associate professor of biology, said the birds are beautiful, but can become a nuisance.
“Humans have provided the geese with perfect habitats, and they’re very adaptable birds,” Stancampiano said. “We are seeing more birds that are living in urban areas year round. They are called resident geese. And, while it’s cool to have them, they do become a nuisance. In reservoirs, they leave so much waste in the water it causes algae blooms.”
Stancampiano also said the birds can become aggressive during nesting season.
“I’m sure that these geese on campus are nesting,” Stancampiano said. “Don’t mess with them. Leave them alone. While they’re nesting, they will hiss at you and be more aggressive. They won’t hurt you, but really, they’re protected. You’re not allowed to mess with them.”
Angry geese have made news across Oklahoma City.
Last week, workers at the Bank of America, 5613 N. May Ave., reported issues with a hissing mother goose who had recently laid eight eggs and was keeping visitors from the front doors.
Signs were posted by the building’s staff, warning visitors to “Beware of Attack Geese.” The mother goose, named Donna, is known to flap her wings, hiss, and squawk at anyone who gets too close to her nest.
Similar behavior can be expected by anyone who gets too close to OCU’s resident geese.
Stancampiano and other members of the science department said they already are familiar with the mixed blessings of the birds.
The two nesting geese have already gotten into Dr. Adam Ryburn’s, biology professor, herb garden. The professors fear that the birds might continue to decimate their recently planted crops in the OCU community garden.
Students seem less concerned about the birds, even walking across the quad to meet them.
Leiper said he was unsurprised the geese chose OCU for their home.
“I think they chose it because it’s a comfortable place to live and learn,” Leiper said. “But that’s my geese. They definitely represent the soaring spirit of OCU.”
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