Every time I see an animal eager to cross the road, I get a little nervous! The last thing I want to do is – gasp! – hit one, but it’s also dangerous to slam on the brakes at high speeds. No matter what, it’s always an uncomfortable situation. They’re not really good at reading road signs, and they seem to never walk in a straight line, pausing and hesitating midway. I can’t begin to tell you how many frazzled squirrels I’ve seen commit to crossing the road but then change their minds. Raccoons are a little more reliable, they bee-line quickly across the road with their end destination in sight. There are pigeons and they get spooked pretty easily and just fly away quickly.
But geese, Canadian geese specifically, I don’t have much experience with crossing the road. I’ve fed one or two before, and I know they’re pretty quirky, silly creatures, but after watching this video, I think I may have had a change of heart – these long-necked waddlers are pretty smart!
It’s hard to believe that at one point in time the Canadian goose was on the verge of extinction. Yep, that’s right. This waterfowl, that is now overpopulated and seen in high-density and low-density areas, went from a population of under 500,000 in the 80s to over 5 million today. One of the factors for this spike in growth is because Canadian geese don’t need much to survive – grass to feed on, water to drink and open views to fly. With many parks and lush public spaces in cities these days, the bird has been able to adapt and thrive in the urban jungle, as seen in this video.
On a street corner in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, a woman excitedly whipped out her camera to catch the action. As she was walking by, she noticed a flock of geese patiently waiting at the crosswalk. They’re all standing there watching as the traffic whizzes by. The light turns red and the geese slowly come in together to form a single file line and cross the street. They are careful and deliberate, making sure to follow each other one little step at a time so as not to break formation or get crazy!
It’s really quite astounding how well behaved and polite they appear to be. They don’t want a problem, they don’t want to cause a fuss, they just want to get to the other side. Yes they have wings, and they could have easily flown over, but did you know, because they are grazing animals, they tend to walk more than fly – and stop traffic while they’re at it!
Click below to watch the cutest pack of geese act like humans! This crew is one smart bunch.
