Quite so...and it probably goes without saying...don't eat the compost. :-D According to CDC, the highly contagious H5N1 Avian Flu has never affected humans in the US. Apparently there are a bunch of avian flu's though. Documented cases (such as the Asian outbreak) resulted from direct contact with infected birds. I wasn't able to determine how long the virus can survive outside a host. http://www.cdc.gov/flu/avian/gen-info/avian-flu-humans.htm Salmonella, a bacteria, can survive in the feces and chickens and reptiles can have it all over themselves. I would definitely take reasonable precautions when handling any kind of fresh poultry manure, but a few months of composting should take care of things.

Quote;"Yes Paul they do, and it's usually to nest." Actually that is not correct. In fact, most of what people believe about the behavior of wild geese is incorrect. Originally the Wild Canadian Geese wintered on the Gulf Coast and migrated to central Canada for their summer breeding grounds, but due to excessive hunting pressure by the early 1940's Canadian Geese were considered endangered. Most of the states on the migratory fly routes established very strict hunting rules and daily bag limits in an effort to maintain the species. In addition, many hunting and conservation groups started a hatch and release program in an effort to boost the goose population. While the hatch and release programs worked very well, they had one major problem, the geese were released in the local areas where they were hatched. This meant these geese had been raised by people so they did not have the natural fear of man that is instinctive to the true wild geese, and these geese had little to no social contact with the true Wild Canadian Geese which were only present during the migration, thus the geese from the hatch and release programs tend to remain in the same area summer & winter. Geese are vegetarians and while they do eat some aquatic plants in the marshes, they much prefer to eat young tender grass in the open meadows, however, due to their physical size they cannot just jump up and fly like other birds, but rather they must run into the wind, flapping their wings until they get up enough airspeed to actually fly in the same way that an airplane must run down a runway. When the grass is less than 6 to 8 inches high they can run fine, but as the grass gets taller they cannot run through the grass fast enough to fly, so they prefer to feed on the banks of streams or ponds where they can quickly get to the water to have an open runway to take off. They prefer to nest on the edge of a pond in the wetlands where their nest is concealed by the reeds or cattails and it is difficult for land mammals to reach the nest through the marshy terrain and the nest is generally very close to open water so they have a good flight path for takeoffs and landings. The major problem with the geese that have evolved from the hatch and release program is that they lack the natural fear of man that is evident in the descendants of the true wild geese. As was described in the original post, in many areas these birds have become a nuisance because they feed on lawns, golf courses and those large tracts of grass found around shopping center parking lots. (The geese love the open parking lot as a runway). When i was a kid on the farm we had a large flock of geese which was a mixture of domestic geese and some that my grandfather had gotten from Eastern Ohio Conservation Club hatch & release program. I can tell you first hand that you will find it extremely difficult to persuade those geese to leave once they have decided they like the territory. and unless you have a very large dog, I would not suggest letting the dog out to chase the geese. When threatened geese will generally group tightly together in the flock and begin moving away slowly, but if they are crowded too much they will definitely stand their ground. They will begin by assuming a defensive posture where they hold their head and neck stretched straight out in front of them, honking and hissing. If the offender does not heed the warning they will quickly run forward, grab the offender in their beaks and begin flapping their wings terribly. Take it from experience, when a goose hits you with the hard bony leading edge part of their wing it feels like you were hit with a ball bat. I have seen grown men, 80lb coon hounds and dobbermen pincers run for cover. In fact, to this day I have some scars on my legs from a goose.

obviously this is a little late, but here is a section of the illinois wildlife code. imho, it includes damaging nests of native and specifically birds of prey. does your state have anything similar? am i wrong? "520 ILCS 5/2.2) (from Ch. 61, par. 2.2) Sec. 2.2. This Act shall apply only to the wild birds and parts of wild birds (their nests and eggs), and wild mammals and parts of wild mammals, which shall include their green hides, in the State of Illinois, or which may be brought into the State, that are hereby defined as follows: All birds, both game and non‑game (except the House Sparrow, Passer domesticus; European Starling, Sturnus vulgaris; and Rock Dove or Domestic Pigeon, Columba livia). GAME BIRDS‑Ruffed grouse, Bonasa umbellus; Sharp‑tailed grouse, Pediocetes phasianellus; Bobwhite quail, Colinus virginianus; Hungarian Partridge, Perdix perdix; Chukar Partridge, Alectoris graeca; Ring‑necked Pheasant, Phasianus colchicus; Greater Prairie Chicken, Tympanuchus cupido; Wild Turkey, Meleagris gallopavo. MIGRATORY GAME BIRDS‑Waterfowl including brant, wild ducks, geese and swans, Anatidae; rails, gallinules and coots, Rallidae; snipe, Gallinago gallinago; woodcock, Scolopax minor; pigeons, including doves and wild pigeons (except domestic pigeons), Columbidae; and crows, Corvidae. RESIDENT AND MIGRATORY NON‑GAME BIRDS‑Loons, Gaviidae; grebes, Podicipedidae; pelicans, Pelecanidae; cormorants, Phalacrocoracidae; herons, bitterns and egrets, Ardeidae; ibises and spoonbills, Threskiornithidae; storks, Ciconiidae; vultures, Carthartidae; kites, hawks and eagles, Accipitridae; ospreys, Pandionidae; falcons, including the Peregrine Falcon, Falconidae; cranes, Gruidae; rails and gallinules, Rallidae; all shorebirds of the families Charadriidae, Scolopacidae, Recurvirostridae and Phalaropodidae; jaegers, Stercorariidae; gulls and terns, Laridae; cuckoos, Cuculidae; owls, Tytonidae and Strigidae; whip‑poor‑wills and nighthawks, Caprimulgidae; swifts, Apodidae; hummingbirds, Trochilidae, Kingfishers, Alcedinidae; woodpeckers, Picidae; kingbirds and flycatchers, Tyrannidae; larks, Alaudidae; swallows and martins, Hirundinidae; crows, magpies and jays, Corvidae; chickadees and titmice, Paridae; nuthatches, Sittidae; creepers, Certhiidae; wrens, Troglodytidae; mockingbirds, catbirds and thrashers, Mimidae; robins, bluebirds and thrushes, Turdidae; gnatcatchers and kinglets, Sylviidae; pipits, Motacillidae; waxwings, Bombycillidae; shrikes, Laniidae; vireos, Vireonidae; warblers, Parulidae; European Tree Sparrow, Passer montanus; blackbirds, meadowlarks and orioles, Icteridae; tanagers, thraupidae; cardinals, grosbeaks, finches, towhees, dickcissels, sparrows, juncos, buntings and longspurs, Fringillidae. GAME MAMMALS‑Woodchuck, Marmota monax; Gray squirrel, Sciurus carolinensis; Fox squirrel, Sciurus niger; White‑tailed jackrabbit, Lepus townsendii; Eastern cottontail, Sylvilagus floridanus; Swamp rabbit, Sylvilagus aquaticus; White‑tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus. FUR‑BEARING MAMMALS‑Muskrat, Ondatra zibethicus; Beaver, Castor canadensis; Raccoon, Procyon lotor; Opossum, Didelphis marsupialis; Least weasel, Mustela rixosa; Long‑tailed weasel, Mustela frenata; Mink, Mustela vison; River otter, Lutra canadensis; Striped skunk, Mephitis mephitis; Badger, Taxidea taxus; Red fox, Vulpes vulpes; Gray fox, Urocyon cineraoargenteus; Coyote, Canis latrans; Bobcat, Lynx rufus. OTHER MAMMALS‑Flying squirrel, Glaucomys volans; Red squirrel, Tamiasciurus hudsonicus; Eastern Woodrat, Neotoma floridana; Golden Mouse, Ochrotomys nuttalli; Rice Rat, Oryzomys palustris; Bats, Vespertilionidae. It shall be unlawful for any person at any time to take, possess, sell, or offer for sale, any of these wild birds (dead or alive) and parts of wild birds (including their nests and eggs), wild mammals (dead or alive) and parts of wild mammals, including their green hides contrary to the provisions of this Act. However, nothing in this Act shall prohibit bona‑fide public or state scientific, educational or zoological institutions from receiving, holding and displaying "

Hey OJ!; The wildlife and A/C pretty well all co-exist. They actually have an office that has sole responsibility to monitor, maintain, and encourage as much natural and native wildlife and plants as possible without impacting the main (flying) mission. The layout and location of the runways are so far from the rest of the base that the birds adjust. There are some strikes during the goose/duck migration, and I know they have some sort of sound deterrent on the runway itself, but for the rest of the base they try to encourage as much natural wildlife as possible. We had a couple wonderful colonies of Purple Martins, two long bluebird trails, scores of native birds that were nesting, and a large herd of deer. We also had a visiting bear on base our first year here, but the state game commission, in it's infinite wisdom, shot and killed it because they "forgot" to bring a tranquilizer dart. The base officials called the state officials to "remove" it to a safe area. The goons shot it instead of relocating it. I was livid. Wes and Harry found a bear while out scouting last weekend. They went one way; the bear went the other and everyone's happy.