Katie Couric's Notebook: Geese

The city of New York is declaring a war on geese, and some animal rights activists are crying foul.

As many as 25,000 Canadian geese inhabit the metropolitan area, and those birds can become a feathered foe if they collide with airplanes.

In fact, a flock of geese destroyed the engines of US Airways flight 1549 causing that emergency landing on the Hudson River in January.

Operation "goose – be – gone" involves reducing the population within five miles of the airports.

Some are protesting New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg's decision to euthanize 2000 geese by trapping and killing them in molting season - the time when they can't fly.

But with more than 73,000 bird strikes reported nationally in the past 8 years, wildlife experts and the FAA concur - it'll take more than a wing and a prayer to protect airplanes in flight.

The debate continues in New York. But for now those geese are cooked.

I'm Maggie Rodriguez, CBS News.