Snow Geese Migration

This video shows thousands of geese on a body of water in theMissouri River flyway near Desoto National Wildlife Refuge in Harrison County, Iowa.  The video was captured at peak migration when up to 500,000 geese are over the area at any given time.

• How can one area support so many geese at once?

• Why are there so many geese?
• Why do the geese come to this location?
• Do these geese live at this location?
• What environmental factors may be causing the migration of the geese?
• How might group behavior impact the survival and reproduction of snow geese?

Students could:

• Explore migration of mammals, birds, and amphibians across the world using Migrations in Motion
• Look for patterns in snow geese migrations and seasonal changes.
• Compare migration patterns between birds, animals, insects and reptiles.
• Research the behavior of snow geese and how their behavior relates to their chance of survival and reproduction (possible resource: Cornell Lab of Ornithology).
• Generate a list of why living things migrate. 

• Migrations in Motion: This map shows the average movement of mammals, amphibians, and birds.
• Polar Bears International | Polar Bear Tracking: Live-track polar bears using a map and video.
• Cornell Lab of Ornithology | Snow Geese: Learn about the appearance, distribution/migration, behavior, and conservation of snow geese.