If the sight of a Canada Goose trudging through snow filled ditches, has you worried this week, a local expert says there is nothing to be concerned about.

Zoe Nakata is Executive Director for the Wildlife Haven Rehabilitation Centre at Ile des Chenes. Nakata says these geese are hardy creatures and she is not worried about them succumbing to the cold or snowy conditions.

"It's not that unusual for us to have a snow event in April or in October," says Nakata. "So our Manitoba geese, they've seen their share of snow and we're not seeing drastically low temperatures either. So we're certainly not worried about them."

But the same can not be said for other Manitobans.

"We've got a lot of concerned citizens that were calling us to see if we should pick these guys up, bring them in to the centre or help them in any way," says Nakata. "But you know, our message is consistent that these geese, they are very hardy creatures."

Nakata says for those birds who decided to hunker down in the snow, they have good insulation with their feathers and should not be phased. Further to that, she says if they are sitting in a snow filled ditch, there is a chance that underneath is a nest of eggs.

"Some of them may be nesting and protecting their eggs," she says. "But again, these geese are made for this."

Nakata says we should also not worry that the weather has been too cold for the freshly laid eggs.

"They have got a lot of down and feather insulation that they are able to protect those eggs," she explains. "And that may be why some of them are really staying put and allow themselves to be buried in the snow is to protect those eggs."

Nakata says if someone decided that one of these birds needed help and chose to pick them up and bring them to the Rehabilitation Centre, they would risk putting any eggs in jeopardy.

As for their food source, Nakata says they feed on grass and are quite capable of still finding that food underneath the snow.

So, why do these geese opt to hang out in ditches along very busy roadways in Manitoba?

"My initial answer would be, maybe cause we built roadways where geese live," she says. "Another reason is that there is nice grass there and water nearby in the ditches I guess."

Meanwhile, while Nakata says geese typically mate for life, they are able to move on if their partner dies.

"We often have people call in that are very worried about the remaining mate, people think that guy's gonna perish as well because it's waiting around," notes Nakata. "That does not typically happen. These guys have pretty good survival instincts and they will know that if their mate is not there anymore, they are able to move on, find another mate and survive."