(a) Which Canada geese are covered by this order? This regulation addresses the control and management of resident Canada geese (Branta canadensis), as defined in § 21.6.
(b) What is the depredation order for resident Canada geese nests and eggs, and what is its purpose? The nest and egg depredation order for resident Canada geese authorizes private landowners and managers of public lands (landowners); homeowners' associations; and village, town, municipality, and county governments (local governments); and the employees or agents of any of these persons or entities to destroy resident Canada goose nests and eggs on property under their jurisdiction when necessary to resolve or prevent injury to people, property, agricultural crops, or other interests.
(c) Who may participate in the depredation order? Only landowners, homeowners' associations, and local governments (and their employees or their agents) in the lower 48 States and the District of Columbia are eligible to implement the resident Canada goose nest and egg depredation order.
(d) What are the restrictions of the depredation order for resident Canada goose nests and eggs? The resident Canada goose nest and egg depredation order is subject to the following restrictions:
(1) Before any management actions can be taken, landowners, homeowners' associations, and local governments must register with the Service at https://epermits.fws.gov/eRCGR. Landowners, homeowners' associations, and local governments (collectively termed “registrants”) must also register each employee or agent working on their behalf. Once registered, registrants and agents will be authorized to act under the depredation order.
(2) Registrants authorized to operate under the depredation order must use nonlethal goose management techniques to the extent they deem appropriate in an effort to minimize take.
(3) Methods of nest and egg destruction or take are at the registrant's discretion from among the following:
(i) Egg oiling, using 100 percent corn oil, a substance exempted from regulation by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency under the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide, and Rodenticide Act, and
(ii) Egg and nest destruction, including but not limited to the removal and disposal of eggs and nest material.
(4) Registrants may conduct resident Canada goose nest and egg destruction activities at any time of year. Homeowners' associations and local governments or their agents must obtain landowner consent prior to destroying nests and eggs on private property within the homeowners' association or local government's jurisdiction and be in compliance with all State and local laws and regulations.
(5) Registrants authorized to operate under the depredation order may possess, transport, and dispose of resident Canada goose nests and eggs taken under this section. Registrants authorized to operate under the program may not sell, offer for sale, barter, or ship for the purpose of sale or barter any resident Canada goose nest or egg taken under this section.
(6) Registrants exercising the privileges granted by this section must submit an annual report summarizing activities, including the date, numbers, and location of nests and eggs taken by October 31 of each year at https://epermits.fws.gov/eRCGR before any subsequent registration for the following year.
(7) Nothing in this section authorizes the destruction of resident Canada goose nests or the take of resident Canada goose eggs contrary to the laws or regulations of any State or Tribe, and none of the privileges of this section may be exercised unless the registrant is authorized to operate under the program and possesses the appropriate State or Tribal permits, when required. Moreover, this section does not authorize the killing of any migratory bird species or destruction of their nest or eggs other than resident Canada geese.
(8) Registrants may not undertake any actions under this section if the activities adversely affect species designated as endangered or threatened under the authority of the Endangered Species Act. Persons operating under this order must immediately report the take of any species protected under the Endangered Species Act to the Service. Further, to protect certain species from being adversely affected by management actions, registrants must:
(i) Follow the Federal-State Contingency Plan for the whooping crane;
(ii) Conduct no activities within 300 meters of a whooping crane or Mississippi sandhill crane nest;
(iii) Follow all Regional (or National when available) Bald Eagle Nesting Management guidelines for all management activities;
(iv) Contact the Arizona Ecological Services Office (for the Colorado River and Arizona sites) or the Carlsbad Fish and Wildlife Office (for Salton Sea sites) if control activities are proposed in or around occupied habitats (cattail or cattail bulrush marshes) to discuss the proposed activity and ensure that implementation will not adversely affect clapper rails or their habitats; and
(v) In California, any control activities of resident Canada geese in areas used by the following species listed under the Endangered Species Act must be done in coordination with the appropriate local FWS field office and in accordance with standard local operating procedures for avoiding adverse effects to the species or its critical habitat:
(A) Birds: Light-footed clapper rail, California clapper rail, Yuma clapper rail, California least tern, southwestern willow flycatcher, least Bell's vireo, western snowy plover, California gnatcatcher.
(B) Amphibians: California red-legged frog and California tiger salamander.
(C) Insects: Valley elderberry longhorn beetle and delta green ground beetle.
(D) Crustaceans: Vernal pool fairy shrimp, conservancy fairy shrimp, longhorn fairy shrimp, vernal pool tadpole shrimp, San Diego fairy shrimp, and Riverside fairy shrimp.
(E) Plants: Butte County meadowfoam, large-flowered wooly meadowfoam, Cook's lomatium, Contra Costa goldfields, Hoover's spurge, fleshy owl's clover, Colusa grass, hairy Orcutt grass, Solano grass, Greene's tuctoria, Sacramento Valley Orcutt grass, San Joaquin Valley Orcutt grass, slender Orcutt grass, California Orcutt grass, spreading navarretia, and San Jacinto Valley crownscale.
(e) Can the depredation order be suspended? We reserve the right to suspend or revoke this authorization for a particular landowner, homeowners' association, or local government if we find that the registrant has not adhered to the terms and conditions specified in the depredation order. Final decisions to revoke authority will be made by the appropriate Regional Director. The criteria and procedures for suspension, revocation, reconsideration, and appeal are outlined in §§ 13.27 through 13.29 of this subchapter. For the purposes of this section, “issuing officer” means the Regional Director and “permit” means the authority to act under this depredation order. For purposes of § 13.29(e), appeals must be made to the Director. Additionally, at such time that we determine that resident Canada goose populations no longer need to be reduced in order to resolve or prevent injury to people, property, agricultural crops, or other interests, we may choose to terminate part or all of the depredation order by subsequent regulation. In all cases, we will annually review the necessity and effectiveness of the depredation order.
(f) Information collection requirements. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) has approved the information collection requirements associated with this depredation order and assigned OMB Control Number 1018-0146. Federal agencies may not conduct or sponsor, and a person is not required to respond to, a collection of information unless it displays a currently valid OMB control number. Direct comments regarding the burden estimate or any other aspect of the information collection to the Service's Information Collection Clearance Officer at the address provided at 50 CFR 2.1(b).
[71 FR 45988, Aug. 10, 2006, as amended at 72 FR 46408, Aug. 20, 2007; 79 FR 43966, July 29, 2014; 84 FR 28773, June 20, 2019. Redesignated at 87 FR 882, Jan. 7, 2022; 87 FR 883, Jan. 7, 2022]