Through the end of May, South Orange Health Officer John Festa and Animal Control Officer Dick Ash will continue making weekly trips to a wetland area of Newstead to conduct goose egg oiling—a method of goose population control.

Once the parent goose tending a nest is held at bay, one egg must first be dropped into a bucket of water to determine the stage of development. If an egg floats, it can't be tampered with, but if it sinks, all the eggs in the nest are then coated with oil, which effectively hinders further development and prevents them from hatching goslings.

Festa and Ash have oiled 35 eggs this year and 15 just today. According to GeesePeace, the organization that developed the egg oiling technique for municipalities, Canadian goose populations double every five years if no population control measures are taken.

Photos are courtesy of the Health Department.