When a Mother Goose Loses her Lifelong Mate, a Friendly Deer Steps in
BUFFALO, NY - It's a scene right out of a Disney movie, a mother goose has lost her lifelong mate and was left alone to create and tend to her nest. She spends the day sheltering her eggs from the cold spring air inside an empty cemetery urn chosen as home.
The loss of her male partner now makes her vulnerable to any would-be predators who choose to approach the nest. But, in an unlikely twist of fate, an adult deer has befriended the mother goose, taking over the role of protector.
This animal arrangement is highly unusual, since there's no known way that a deer and goose can communicate. Yet somehow the deer has come to understand the need of the nesting mother.
The deer now spends its days near the urn acting as guardian when needed. As passersby approach the area the deer stands and places itself between the person and the nesting goose. On one occasion the deer even took a protective stance taking on a barking dog near the area of the urn.
How this nature story ends is anyone's guess, and there's no telling if the deer and goose will part ways after the goslings hatch or whether this special friendship will continue beyond the nest.
Either way we'll keep a watchful eye on these two friends and let you know how it works out.
Source
VIDEO Deer Guards Goose Nest
Hopefully by not blurring out the names on the headstones, people will not figure out where this is too quickly. It would be a shame for these two animals to be disturbed. It is amazing that people are still so shocked by animal behavior and the way in which animals instinctively protect each other when they see a need to do so - it's never a question of who they are protecting, what that other animal looks like, what color or breed or even if that animal can communicate the same way. It's all about seeing a need and filling that need. If animals can figure it out, why is it that humans, as the 'superior' race (mmmm) can't??
How precious. Kinda shows how we're all connected!
God's world....God's way
Wow, that is so amazing. I hope everything ends up ok for all of them. God is keeping watch over them .Thank you for sharing this.
That is absolutely heartbreaking.
The Goose and the Deer may not be able to communicate in a way us humans can understand but I know that the Creator's creations are all cabaple of communication between themselves!
I live in Buffalo. Here's how the story turned out. This is from WGRZ, Channel 2:The Story of the Goose & Deer
An update on this en-deering story occurred over the weekend. A viewer who was passing through Forest Lawn happened upon the deer as it approached the goose and her goslings. She witnessed the meeting of the protector and the protected presumably for the first time. The deer approached the group and was allowed to move to within just a few feet of the little birds.
The mother goose and her six or seven goslings have apparently "flown the coop" after they hatched in the past day or so. They were seen under the mother goose in the nest urn earlier on Wednesday but then were photographed leaving the nest and walking around the cemetery. So far there is no sign of the deer which was apparently watching over them.
Ever since they were spotted in early April, it was like a scene right out of a Disney movie. The mother goose had lost her lifelong mate and was now left alone to create and tend to her nest in Forest Lawn Cemetery in Buffalo, NY. She spent the day sheltering her eggs from the cool spring air inside an empty urn she had chosen as home.
The loss of her male partner and guardian now made her vulnerable to any would-be predators that chose to approach the nest. But, in an unlikely twist of fate, an adult deer befriended the mother goose, taking over the role of protector.
This animal arrangement was highly unusual, since there's no known way that a deer and goose can communicate. Yet somehow the deer came to understand the need of the nesting mother.
Mark Carra is a naturalist in residence with the Buffalo Audubon Society site at Beaver Meadows in North Java, Wyoming County. Carra says this type of bonding between animals may happen more than we realize. He cites the example of a crow watchingover a kitten several years ago. Carra also theorizes that there may have been a previous connection between the deer and the goose that we just don't know about. It could be the deer lost its mother while young and the goose helped it out.
Carra also applauded the installation of the web-cam by WGRZ's Andy Parker noting people may be curious. But if they approached too close they could spook the deer and cause problems. They might also have provoked the goose on her nest. He cited examples of bald eagles simplychoosing to abandon a nest with eggs because people got too close while trying to watch with binoculars.
Joel Thomas, wildlife administrator with the SPCA of Erie County, says the deer will now probably return to its normal deer - like activities as its feeds, forages, and eventually loomks to breed in the fall. It is thought to be a male deer or buck from its appearance.
The deer spent its days near the urn acting as guardian when needed. As passersby approached the area the deer stood and placed itself between the person and the nesting goose. On one occasion the deer even took a protective stance as it attempted to fend off a barking dog near the area of the urn. It was also seen on the webcam fending off some crows which were watching the vulnerable goslings.
Craig Cygan owner of Borders on Patrol, a company hired to move the goose flock from time to time says a goose would normally attempt to fend off the deer with loud honks and raised wings especially near the nest. This one, he says seemed to like the company.