Residents unhappy with what flocking geese and ducks leave behind at Canyon Lake Park will be stuck navigating the mine fields for the foreseeable future.

Unless the city does something to decrease the number of birds living there year-round, city and state officials say goose and duck droppings will continue to be a prominent feature at the popular recreation area.

"We just don't have the budget for year-round daily sweeping and cleaning. It's a financial or budget constraint for us," city parks manager Lon Van Deusen said. "If the management plan could be followed, that would help to reduce some of the complaints.

"Our hands are tied. There's not an awful lot we can do at this point."

Last week, the Rapid City Council hit the brakes on a feeding ban of the feathered critters, the proposed first step in a multi-faceted Waterfowl Management Plan they approved earlier this year to control overpopulation.

Residents love to feed the birds, they said, and aldermen split 50-50 on whether it would be fair to fine constituents for what many call a family pastime.

But the city and state Game, Fish & Parks office in Rapid City also receive numerous complaints every year from other park users -- brides who drag their long, white hems through goose poop, wintertime golfers who putt through feathers and fishermen who have to pull in their lines when birds crowd to snap stale bread out of the water.

John Kanta, GF&P regional wildlife manager, said it was those complaints that spurred the city to take a look at management solutions in the first place. Kanta and Art Smith, administrator of the state's wildlife damage management program, advised the citizen committee that devised the waterfowl plan.

"We didn't just one day decide we wanted to stop people from feeding and kill a lot of geese. What we heard pretty loud and clear is complaints from the public, not only in my office, but the city, as well," Kanta said. "People want to use the park for a number of different reasons, but the feeling is waterfowl interfere with a lot of those other reasons."

"We try to work with people and offer suggestions to them, but it all comes down to the sheer number of the animals there. Without taking care of some of that, there's not a whole lot they can do," Kanta said.

What Rapid City is experiencing is a waterfowl population above and beyond what society will tolerate, Smith said.

"You could shove a whole lot more waterfowl into Storybook Island or Canyon Lake Park. Biologically, we're not at a tolerance level where things start falling apart," Smith said. "It's a people-driven problem. We created this to feed the waterfowl. There's the root of your problem right there: attracting them in and making it good for them."

Finding a more healthful feed than stale hot dog buns would be better for the animals, but it wouldn't solve the other problems their feeding creates, Smith said.

"You've got complaints about feces. You've got complaints about aggressive waterfowl," Smith said. "Yeah, you could be feeding these animals appropriate food. They're not going to leave the area, though. You're going to end up attracting more in."

Van Deusen, who supports a feeding ban, said another problem is even if his parks division had the manpower to clean off the walkways, few people would notice the difference.

"Nearly all the calls we get are to clean off the island before my wedding next weekend or tomorrow. We did try to do that this summer, but most weddings are on the weekends, and we don't have staff that's dedicated to cleaning goose poop on the weekends," Van Deusen said. "By Saturday, you couldn't even tell we'd been there."

Thomas Smith fishes at Canyon Lake every day he can, an activity that gets interrupted anytime someone comes to feed the birds.

"I've been out here fishing, and people bring garbage sacks full of bread. They're all over there, and the fish stop biting," Smith said. "I didn't say anything, but they ruined the fishing."

Most days, he has to clean off the pier before settling in, and he's seen firsthand the geese's nasty streak. They once swarmed his pickup truck after they heard the crinkle of plastic - not from a bag of bread, but a bag of bobbers.

"It's a mess," Smith said. "They have it pretty easy here. Where's their easy chair and cup of coffee? They get to be a nuisance."

At nearby Meadowbrook Golf Course, the staff spends at least 25 percent of their maintenance hours during the winter cleaning up after geese, city recreation manager Doug Lowe said

"We try and power rake things, pick up leaves and try to get as much of the feces and that kind of stuff off the course to allow play to continue. It is a constant battle," Lowe said. "If you limit the number of geese that are in your community, it's going to help citywide."

From about now through March, geese bed down at the golf course and chomp away at the nutrient-fed, manicured grass, leaving feathers and other less desirable by-products on the course. His staff chases geese off the course three or four times a day during the winter months.

"There's always going to be people that complain about it," Lowe said. "To tell you the truth, the patrons are more understanding than what you would expect. It's a pretty good testament to the people who play the course and put up with it and hope someday, something would be done to take care of it."

Course regulars Ron Buskerud and Park Owens said the nuisance is most noticeable at the holes nearest the park. But for them, that's all it is -- a nuisance.

"This time of the year, it's not like playing in the summer," Buskerud said. "You get used to a few extra obstacles."

"It's one of those things where you move it or the ball, and you clean your shoes before going into the house," Owens said. "It's more of a nuisance. You just step lightly in some areas."

Across the street, at Blessed Sacrament Church, Father Dan Juelfs said something needs to be done to control the flock's population.

Geese often cross Jackson Boulevard to feast on the church's grassy lawn, and their droppings can get so bad that the church has to pressure wash the sidewalk to prevent parishioners from tracking the mess inside.

"It would be nice not to have them around here all the time," Juelfs said. "It's a balance. We're across the street from the place that they live, so obviously, we can't prevent them from being here. But on the other hand, if there were half the numbers, it sure would be nicer.

"The numbers are getting so big," Juelfs said. "It's one thing if you have 100 of them, but another if you have 1,000."

Jim Good, chairman of the city's Urban Wildlife Committee, said those unhappy with what the geese and ducks have wrought need to take action.

"Don't call the South Dakota Department of Game & Fish. Don't call the recreation department. If they want to get control of the problem, they need to get in touch with their council person," Good said.

"Otherwise, you can see where it sits right now -- the council says we don't want to deal with this because our constituents don't want a ban on feeding."

"What they have in the park is multiple uses."

Contact Emilie Rusch at 394-8453 or emilie.rusch@rapidcityjournal.com