Video of man pushing goslings from Kelowna highrise cautionary tale about humans and wildlife

A video of someone pushing Canada geese goslings off a balcony in Kelowna has been making the rounds online, but a resident in the building said that it’s a warning for people to think more about how to prevent these kinds of conflicts with wildlife.

The video shows someone pushing goslings off a balcony with a pool noodle, and then it shows the goslings after their brutal fall. People have been outraged.

Around 10:30 a.m. bystanders called police to the 500-block of Doyle Avenue, who brought the Conservation Officer Service. Conservation officers relocated three uninjured goslings and two adult geese to Okanagan Lake, while two injured goslings were taken to a wildlife rehabilitation centre, according to the Kelowna RCMP.

Les Bellamy is a resident in the building and said the issue with the geese began last year when someone in the building encouraged geese to nest on their balcony because they thought it would be cool.

“A property owner was strongly encouraged to take measures to prevent nesting, that would have prevented this from ever occurring in the first place. So, that individual chose instead to say, ‘I think it would be wonderful to watch geese hatch on my balcony,’ without recognizing the risk that came with that, which was geese are going to come back to the same spot to nest the following year,” Bellamy said.

Kelowna RCMP Cpl. Steven Lang said the goose pusher was educated about proper wildlife removal procedures.

“In their defence, the individual described that the building had experienced issues with geese for the last few years and had not found a solution to deal with the issue,” Lang said in an email.

Bellamy said this whole incident stems from what happened last year when someone disregarded advice to not encourage geese to lay eggs on their balcony.

“I believe my neighbour who encouraged this last year was being selfish. And those birds have paid the price,” he said. “That reckless decision by that property owner is what created what happened.”

He said people should be cautious about how they interact with wildlife.

“It’s akin to, we often hear, don’t feed wildlife. And I think it’s very similar. Don’t encourage wildlife to nest in an area that’s not safe for it,” Bellamy said.

The protective status of geese is a bit complicated since Canada geese are protected under the Migratory Birds Convention Act, but some can be hunted under certain conditions.

People who encounter geese or nests are advised to contact the Conservation Officer Service at 1-877-952-7277.