Geese fly high over long distances, lower for short hops. Geese of the Atlantic Flyway winter primarily in Chesapeake Bay and Delmarva region. Smaller numbers winter from as far north as New York and coastal New England to southeastern Pennsylvania and New Jersey. In spring, honkers retrace their routes to ancestral breeding grounds. Migrating flocks are composed of several family units, parents and offspring of the previous year, but the yearlings leave their parents shortly after arrival.
Adults usually nest in the same locale year after year, some even using the same nest foundation.
In Pennsylvania, geese are common spring migrants in late February, March and early April, with stragglers into May. In fall, honkers are common September-November migrants. If the winter is mild, some stop in the southeastern portion of the state, although most go farther south. Because they're big, strong and aggressive, geese are less subject to predation than most other waterfowl. Hawks and owls prey on immatures and some adults, and snapping turtles, snakes and land-based predators take goslings which stray from their parents' protection.