Our remaining goose is also a herbivore. Though it is a strong and frequent flyer, its short wings,long legs and reduced webbing between its toes indicate that it often walks and seldom swims. By the mid 1940's only 50 birds remained. But, several factors hinder population increases. Mongooses and feral cats kill adults and goslings.
Automobiles hit and kill nene along roadways.
Nene that are attracted to the grassy fairways of golf courses suffer injury or death by errant golf balls. In upland habitats, nutrition is usually not adequate for gosling growth requirements. Nene will probably always need our help to survive. We continue to search for improved and more efficient ways to encourage population growth. Park biologists mark both wild and captive-reared Nene with leg bands to facilitate identification and tracking of individual birds.