‘Goose capturer’ admits mom warned him he’d get in trouble, Texas game wardens say

A man who was caught harassing and capturing a Canada goose in Texas is wishing he would have taken his mother’s advice more seriously.

The man, known as the “goose capturer,” was recorded in a video jumping off a red and white boat to harass the goose over Memorial Day weekend, Texas game wardens said.

People who recorded the incident sent videos to Texas Parks & Wildlife, but wardens were unable to track down the boat or the people involved, according to a Friday field note titled “Mother Knows Best.”

The goose survived, wardens say, but it’s illegal to “hunt” Canada geese during a closed season. In Texas, “hunt” includes the “capture, trap, take or kill, or any attempts thereof.”

Two months after the man was seen capturing the goose, the same wardens who received the videos were performing a water safety check on a different boat than the one in the video. The wardens noticed that several people on the boat were wearing the same type of hat as those in the video.

“One of the Wardens humorously asked about the hats and if they knew the individual who had caught the goose in the video,” the field note says. “The occupants confirmed they knew him and affirmed their knowledge of the ‘goose video.’ They pointed to a male in the back of the boat and identified him as the ‘goose capturer.’”

The “goose capturer” was taken to the wardens’ boat for questioning, and officials say he admitted he was the one in the video who caught the goose.

Game wardens recalled the man saying, “I should’ve listened to my mom!” He added that his mom warned him he was going to get in trouble for harassing a Canada goose.

The man was cited in connection to “Hunting Canada Geese in a Closed Season,” officials said, and was given a warning in connection to “Hunting Canada Geese by Illegal Means and Methods.”