NAHANT — When dealing with abstract problems, Johnson Elementary School Principal Kevin Andrews knows you have to think outside the box for a proper solution.
According to Andrews, Johnson Elementary School has been plagued by Canada geese infiltrating the school grounds, causing both a mess and parental concerns about possible connections to the avian flu, which has recently become a topic of concern.
“We’ve been having a problem with Canadian geese lately,” Andrews said. “It seems they’ve forgotten how to fly all the way north, and they’re very happy about having a big, grassy area to themselves.”
Andrews said the geese eat the grass and leave droppings on the school’s field, causing a stir among both students and parents.
“The kids don’t like it, the parents don’t like it, and we have some concerns about avian flu, which has been on the news,” he explained. “So, parents are starting to say, ‘What can we do?’ to help stop the geese from landing here.”
He said he’s been busy orchestrating ways to combat the issue. The first idea involves placing artificial coyotes around the property to create the illusion of nearby predators. Andrews noted the school has used this method in the past, but it fell short because the coyotes weren’t moved around frequently enough.
“I don’t think the history was that great, but we just need to move them around,” he said. Andrews added it would be a fun exercise to have the students move the fake coyotes around at recess — a playful way to protect the field.
Andrews has another idea in mind as well.
“We also are getting a couple of inflatable spheres that are about two feet in diameter, they’re yellow with big owl eyes on them to help scare the geese away,” he said.
He’s also workshopping a more long-term solution to mitigate the problem.
“Geese love to see a big open field where they know there’s no predators around, so I’m interested in planting a hedgerow out of wildflowers and a mix of hedges and bushes,” Andrews said. “This would also give them the idea that there’s predators in the area.”
He continued, “This is just asking for geese to land in our field and eat there, it’s a big, wide grassy area, and we’re practically inviting them to graze, so it’s definitely an issue that we’re looking at.”
