The number of geese wintering on Texas’ coastal prairie and marshes more than doubled this year from last year’s record low. And the rebound in rice production is part of the reason, according to the Houston Chronicle.
Rice fields are crucial as feeding and roosting areas for wintering geese. And as rice acreage fell over the last few years, so did the number of geese wintering on the Texas coast.
But Kevin Kraai, waterfowl program leader for Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, has hope that if rice acreage can continue to rebound, so can the wintering populations of about 500,000 snow geese.