Bar headed
Commonly kept and seen in captivity, the Bar-headed Goose is one of the best "beginner" geese. In the wild, this species can be found in central Asia, north of the Himalayas. The birds migrate across the mountain range, reaching altitudes of more than 26,000 feet, to Pakistan and India to Winter.
The Bar-headed Goose is a very attractive species. Both sexes share the twin-barring on the head. The rest of the head is white with a streak running down the sides of the neck. The back of the neck is dark gray to black, rest of the body gray overall. To insure you have a pair, you may need to vent sex. Immature geese are somewhat paler and lack the bars on the head.
The breeding season for Bar-heads begin in late May when the pair begins to search for the right nesting area. In captivity, some geese will used open front nest boxes filled with wood shavings or straw. Also provide stands of grass and weeds or shrubs. Like many species of waterfowl, hens first line their nest with down feathers from her breast. Clutch sizes vary from 3 to 7 eggs which only the hen incubates for about 28 days. They have been observed in the wild nesting on cliffs and even in trees in old nests made by other birds!
Both of the parents care for the goslings which are grayish-brown and yellow. The young fledge at about 50 days of age. Will often double-clutch if the first eggs are removed. Some may breed the second year, but as with many members of the Anser genus, the third year is most common.
Bar-heads are among the calmest of the geese species, associating well with other species of waterfowl. They can become extremely tame, following their keeper around waiting for a treat! This trait has also been noticed in the wild in areas where the goose is not threatened.
This goose is mostly vegetarian, feeding on seeds and plant matter in the wild. In captivity, provide a high protein ration during the breeding season and lower protein during the "off-season". Be sure to supplement with forage items year round such as grass clippings, alfalfa and brome hay, as well as other greens. They also love to graze when allowed free range.
Overall, the Bar-head is a great addition to the aviary or barnyard. Their easy going nature, availabity of unrelated stock, high resitance to disease and ease of breeding make them very popular with beginners to the hobby.
The Bar-headed Goose is a very attractive species. Both sexes share the twin-barring on the head. The rest of the head is white with a streak running down the sides of the neck. The back of the neck is dark gray to black, rest of the body gray overall. To insure you have a pair, you may need to vent sex. Immature geese are somewhat paler and lack the bars on the head.
The breeding season for Bar-heads begin in late May when the pair begins to search for the right nesting area. In captivity, some geese will used open front nest boxes filled with wood shavings or straw. Also provide stands of grass and weeds or shrubs. Like many species of waterfowl, hens first line their nest with down feathers from her breast. Clutch sizes vary from 3 to 7 eggs which only the hen incubates for about 28 days. They have been observed in the wild nesting on cliffs and even in trees in old nests made by other birds!
Both of the parents care for the goslings which are grayish-brown and yellow. The young fledge at about 50 days of age. Will often double-clutch if the first eggs are removed. Some may breed the second year, but as with many members of the Anser genus, the third year is most common.
Bar-heads are among the calmest of the geese species, associating well with other species of waterfowl. They can become extremely tame, following their keeper around waiting for a treat! This trait has also been noticed in the wild in areas where the goose is not threatened.
This goose is mostly vegetarian, feeding on seeds and plant matter in the wild. In captivity, provide a high protein ration during the breeding season and lower protein during the "off-season". Be sure to supplement with forage items year round such as grass clippings, alfalfa and brome hay, as well as other greens. They also love to graze when allowed free range.
Overall, the Bar-head is a great addition to the aviary or barnyard. Their easy going nature, availabity of unrelated stock, high resitance to disease and ease of breeding make them very popular with beginners to the hobby.
Canada
escription - male: Canada Geese are large birds, 20 to 50 inches long with a wingspan of 50-68 inches. Canada Geese are most easily identified by their long black neck, with a black head, crown and bill. They have a contrasting white cheek and throat area. Their undertail coverts are white. Their back, upper wings and flank are dark brown with a lighter brown (sometimes, nearly white) breast and belly. They have a short black tail and black legs with black webbed feet.
Canada Geese cover a wide range across North America. Canada Geese in different areas may be different sizes, have different vocalizations or have somewhat different coloring than those in other areas. All groups have the characteristic long black neck, head, crown and bill and the white cheeks.
The smallest Canada Geese (called "cackling geese" because of their high-pitched vocalizations) are only 1/4 the size of the largest Canada Geese (called "honkers").
Description - female: same as the male.
Description - young: Newly hatched Canada Geese look much like ducklings with yellow and gray feathers and a dark bill. But within a week they grow to be rather awkward-looking, fuzzy gray birds. By nine to ten weeks old, they've grown their flight feathers and look like slightly smaller versions of the adult.
Canada Geese cover a wide range across North America. Canada Geese in different areas may be different sizes, have different vocalizations or have somewhat different coloring than those in other areas. All groups have the characteristic long black neck, head, crown and bill and the white cheeks.
The smallest Canada Geese (called "cackling geese" because of their high-pitched vocalizations) are only 1/4 the size of the largest Canada Geese (called "honkers").
Description - female: same as the male.
Description - young: Newly hatched Canada Geese look much like ducklings with yellow and gray feathers and a dark bill. But within a week they grow to be rather awkward-looking, fuzzy gray birds. By nine to ten weeks old, they've grown their flight feathers and look like slightly smaller versions of the adult.
Red breasted
a rare vagrant to Great Britain and other western European areas, where it is sometimes found with Brent flocks. The Red-breasted Goose is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. It was considered a Vulnerable species by the IUCN. Over 80% of the population roost during the winter at just five sites, with nearby feeding areas threatened by changes in land-use. In addition, there has been a strong decline in numbers in the last decades. As it is not clear to what extent the known population fluctuations in this species - as in other Arctic geese - and given the worsening outlook for the species as a whole, the Red-breasted Goose is uplisted from a species of Least Concern to Endangered status in the 2007 IUCN Red List.
Description:
All the species of the Branta genus are distinguished by their dark sooty color, relieved by white, and as a distinction from the grey geese of the genus Anser. This species is unmistakable,
Diet / Feeding:
Ducks and geese generally feed on larvae and pupae usually found under rocks, aquatic animals, plant material, seeds, small fish, snails and crabs.
Description:
All the species of the Branta genus are distinguished by their dark sooty color, relieved by white, and as a distinction from the grey geese of the genus Anser. This species is unmistakable,
Diet / Feeding:
Ducks and geese generally feed on larvae and pupae usually found under rocks, aquatic animals, plant material, seeds, small fish, snails and crabs.
Barnacle
Barnacle Goose Loading... Latin: Branta leucopsis
Average length: M 27.0", F 23.5
Average weight: M 4.03 lbs., F 3.57 lbs.
Description: Barnacle geese have a black chest, neck and crown, with a cream-white face. The sexes are similar in appearance, but males typically are larger. The extension of black from the neck over the head gives the face a hooded appearance. The upper back is black, shading posterior to silver-gray. The breast, sides and flanks are a pale gray and the belly, undertail coverts and rump are white, contrasting markedly with the large black tail. The bill, legs and feet are black.
Breeding: Barnacle geese breed along the northeast coast of Greenland, Svalbard, Norway and Novaya Zemlya, and adjacent Vaygach Island, Russia. There are no breeding records of barnacle geese in North America. Barnacle geese nest in small colonies among rocky crags or on cliffs and islands and lay an average of 4-6 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: The Greenland population of barnacle geese winter in Ireland and the Inner and Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The Svalbard population largely winters in the Solway Firth between England and Scotland. The Russian population winters in the Netherlands and Germany. In North America, infrequent appearances by barnacle geese have been restricted to the east, including Labrador, Ontario, Quebec, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, Ohio and Michigan.
Food habits: Barnacle geese feed on grasses and coastal plants found in salt marshes, grasslands near river estuaries or tidal mud flats.
Average length: M 27.0", F 23.5
Average weight: M 4.03 lbs., F 3.57 lbs.
Description: Barnacle geese have a black chest, neck and crown, with a cream-white face. The sexes are similar in appearance, but males typically are larger. The extension of black from the neck over the head gives the face a hooded appearance. The upper back is black, shading posterior to silver-gray. The breast, sides and flanks are a pale gray and the belly, undertail coverts and rump are white, contrasting markedly with the large black tail. The bill, legs and feet are black.
Breeding: Barnacle geese breed along the northeast coast of Greenland, Svalbard, Norway and Novaya Zemlya, and adjacent Vaygach Island, Russia. There are no breeding records of barnacle geese in North America. Barnacle geese nest in small colonies among rocky crags or on cliffs and islands and lay an average of 4-6 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: The Greenland population of barnacle geese winter in Ireland and the Inner and Outer Hebrides of Scotland. The Svalbard population largely winters in the Solway Firth between England and Scotland. The Russian population winters in the Netherlands and Germany. In North America, infrequent appearances by barnacle geese have been restricted to the east, including Labrador, Ontario, Quebec, Massachusetts, New York, Vermont, Ohio and Michigan.
Food habits: Barnacle geese feed on grasses and coastal plants found in salt marshes, grasslands near river estuaries or tidal mud flats.
Emperor
Latin: Chen canagica
Average length: M 27", F 27"
Average weight: M 6.20 lbs., F 6.10 lbs.
Description: Male and female emperor geese have gray body plumage that is subtly barred with black and white. The white head and hindneck, which are often stained orange-red from feeding in tidal ponds where iron oxide is concentrated, contrast markedly with the dark foreneck. Contrast distinguishes this goose from the blue-morph snow goose, whose entire foreneck and chin are white like the head. The emperor goose's short bill is pink and lacks the black "grinning patch" present in blue geese. The legs and feet of the emperor goose are yellow-orange, while those of the blue goose are pink.
Breeding: Eighty to 90 percent of the world's emperor geese breed along the western coast of Alaska, from Kuskokwim Bay to Kotzebue Sound, and on St. Lawrence and Nunivak islands. Emperor geese prefer to nest on banks along sloughs and rivers, elevated shorelines, marsh hummocks, pingos (low hills or mounds forced up by hydrostatic pressure in an area underlain with permafrost), flat grasslands, raised scour blocks, peninsulas and islands. They lay an average of 5 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Most emperor geese winter along the Aleutian Islands, with fewer numbers along the south coast of the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak and Afognak islands. In mild years, some birds winter along the coast of the Gulf of Alaska and Cook Inlet. Small numbers occur in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon and occasionally northern California.
Population: Alaska's emperor goose population declined precipitously from 139,000 birds in 1964 to 42,000 in 1986. Biologists suspect subsistence hunting and coastal oil pollution are factors responsible for the observed decline.
Food habits: Emperor geese feed on seaweed; eelgrass; sea lettuce; algae; beach rye; beach pea; seabeach sandwort; grasses and sedges; crowberries and mollusks and crustaceans found in intertidal areas, salt marshes and tundra meadows
Average length: M 27", F 27"
Average weight: M 6.20 lbs., F 6.10 lbs.
Description: Male and female emperor geese have gray body plumage that is subtly barred with black and white. The white head and hindneck, which are often stained orange-red from feeding in tidal ponds where iron oxide is concentrated, contrast markedly with the dark foreneck. Contrast distinguishes this goose from the blue-morph snow goose, whose entire foreneck and chin are white like the head. The emperor goose's short bill is pink and lacks the black "grinning patch" present in blue geese. The legs and feet of the emperor goose are yellow-orange, while those of the blue goose are pink.
Breeding: Eighty to 90 percent of the world's emperor geese breed along the western coast of Alaska, from Kuskokwim Bay to Kotzebue Sound, and on St. Lawrence and Nunivak islands. Emperor geese prefer to nest on banks along sloughs and rivers, elevated shorelines, marsh hummocks, pingos (low hills or mounds forced up by hydrostatic pressure in an area underlain with permafrost), flat grasslands, raised scour blocks, peninsulas and islands. They lay an average of 5 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Most emperor geese winter along the Aleutian Islands, with fewer numbers along the south coast of the Alaska Peninsula and Kodiak and Afognak islands. In mild years, some birds winter along the coast of the Gulf of Alaska and Cook Inlet. Small numbers occur in British Columbia, Washington, Oregon and occasionally northern California.
Population: Alaska's emperor goose population declined precipitously from 139,000 birds in 1964 to 42,000 in 1986. Biologists suspect subsistence hunting and coastal oil pollution are factors responsible for the observed decline.
Food habits: Emperor geese feed on seaweed; eelgrass; sea lettuce; algae; beach rye; beach pea; seabeach sandwort; grasses and sedges; crowberries and mollusks and crustaceans found in intertidal areas, salt marshes and tundra meadows
Hawaiin Nene
Latin: Branta sandvicensis
Average length: 22-28"
Average weight: M 5.0 lbs., F 4.3 lbs.
Description: Hawaiian geese have a black face and crown and cream-colored cheeks. The neck is pale grayish streaked with black and has a narrow dark ring at the base. The body plumage and folded wings are gray-brown with transverse barring. The bill, legs and feet are black and the iris is dark brown. Both sexes are similar in appearance, but males typically are larger.
Breeding: Hawaiian geese are found only in the Hawaiian Islands and are the only extant species of goose not occurring naturally in continental areas. The Hawaiian goose formerly bred on all or most of the Hawaiian Islands, but currently is restricted to Hawaii, Kauai and Maui. Preferred nest sites include sparsely-to-densely-vegetated beach strands; shrublands; grasslands and woodlands on well-drained soil, volcanic ash, cinder and lava rock substrates. Females typically nest on the ground and lay an average of 3 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Hawaiian geese are considered sedentary, but, historically, seasonal movements were made in response to changes in food availability as a result of rainfall patterns.
Population: The Hawaiian goose is among the most isolated, sedentary and threatened of all waterfowl. It is the sixth most endangered waterfowl species worldwide. Hunting, egg collecting and predation by introduced mongooses, cats, pigs, dogs and rats contributed to the historic decline of this species. Current threats include scarcity of native food plants, predation by introduced mammals and habitat loss. In certain areas, collisions with vehicles are a major source of mortality. Recovery efforts have included captive rearing and release, predator removal, provision of supplemental food and restoration of native habitats.
Food habits: Hawaiian geese graze and browse on the leaves, seeds, berries and flowers of grasses, herbs and shrubs.
Average length: 22-28"
Average weight: M 5.0 lbs., F 4.3 lbs.
Description: Hawaiian geese have a black face and crown and cream-colored cheeks. The neck is pale grayish streaked with black and has a narrow dark ring at the base. The body plumage and folded wings are gray-brown with transverse barring. The bill, legs and feet are black and the iris is dark brown. Both sexes are similar in appearance, but males typically are larger.
Breeding: Hawaiian geese are found only in the Hawaiian Islands and are the only extant species of goose not occurring naturally in continental areas. The Hawaiian goose formerly bred on all or most of the Hawaiian Islands, but currently is restricted to Hawaii, Kauai and Maui. Preferred nest sites include sparsely-to-densely-vegetated beach strands; shrublands; grasslands and woodlands on well-drained soil, volcanic ash, cinder and lava rock substrates. Females typically nest on the ground and lay an average of 3 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Hawaiian geese are considered sedentary, but, historically, seasonal movements were made in response to changes in food availability as a result of rainfall patterns.
Population: The Hawaiian goose is among the most isolated, sedentary and threatened of all waterfowl. It is the sixth most endangered waterfowl species worldwide. Hunting, egg collecting and predation by introduced mongooses, cats, pigs, dogs and rats contributed to the historic decline of this species. Current threats include scarcity of native food plants, predation by introduced mammals and habitat loss. In certain areas, collisions with vehicles are a major source of mortality. Recovery efforts have included captive rearing and release, predator removal, provision of supplemental food and restoration of native habitats.
Food habits: Hawaiian geese graze and browse on the leaves, seeds, berries and flowers of grasses, herbs and shrubs.
Snow Goose
Latin: Anser caerulescens atlantica
Average length: M 31", F 30"
Average weight: M 7.4 lbs., F 6.1 lbs.
Description: The greater snow goose is a slightly larger edition of the white-phase lesser snow goose. No color dimorphism has been discovered in this race. In the field it is virtually impossible to tell these two races apart. In the hand, the larger size and longer bill of the greater snow goose distinguish it from its smaller counterpart. The sexes are similar in appearance, but the female is often smaller.
Breeding: Greater snow geese breed principally around Foxe Basin, northern Baffin, Bylot, Axel Heiberg and the Ellesmere Islands located in Nunavut, Canada, and in Greenland. They prefer to nest in colonies on well-drained westward slopes or vegetated hilltops, and females lay an average of 4 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Greater snow geese leave their arctic breeding grounds and migrate along a narrow corridor through eastern Canada and the northeastern United States to the mid-Atlantic coast (from New Jersey to North Carolina).
Feeding Habits: Greater snow geese are grubbers, feeding on roots, rhizomes and shoots of bulrushes and salt-marsh cordgrass. They also make extensive use of agricultural fields found adjacent to wintering areas.
Average length: M 31", F 30"
Average weight: M 7.4 lbs., F 6.1 lbs.
Description: The greater snow goose is a slightly larger edition of the white-phase lesser snow goose. No color dimorphism has been discovered in this race. In the field it is virtually impossible to tell these two races apart. In the hand, the larger size and longer bill of the greater snow goose distinguish it from its smaller counterpart. The sexes are similar in appearance, but the female is often smaller.
Breeding: Greater snow geese breed principally around Foxe Basin, northern Baffin, Bylot, Axel Heiberg and the Ellesmere Islands located in Nunavut, Canada, and in Greenland. They prefer to nest in colonies on well-drained westward slopes or vegetated hilltops, and females lay an average of 4 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: Greater snow geese leave their arctic breeding grounds and migrate along a narrow corridor through eastern Canada and the northeastern United States to the mid-Atlantic coast (from New Jersey to North Carolina).
Feeding Habits: Greater snow geese are grubbers, feeding on roots, rhizomes and shoots of bulrushes and salt-marsh cordgrass. They also make extensive use of agricultural fields found adjacent to wintering areas.
White fronted Geese
atin: Anser albifrons
Average length: M 29", F 27"
Average weight: M 6.2 lbs., F 5.5 lbs.
Description: The white-fronted goose is named for the distinctive white band found at the base of bill. The sexes are similar in appearance, but males typically are larger. The head, neck and upper back of white-fronted geese are grayish-brown. The lower back and rump are dark brown, and the tail is dark brown and edged with white. The chest and breast are grayish with dark brown to black blotches and bars on the breast, giving it the nickname "specklebelly." The belly and upper and lower coverts are white. The bill is pinkish and the legs and feet are orange.
Breeding: White-fronted geese are circumpolar in their breeding distribution. The majority of white-fronted geese in North America breed near the Arctic Circle from Alaska to central Canada. They are solitary breeders and nest on both tidal flats and upland areas, most frequently among tall grass and sedges bordering sloughs and marshes. Female white-fronted geese lay an average of 5 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: White-fronted geese migrate along the Pacific or Central flyways and winter in California's Central Valley, coastal and mid-continent Mexico and coastal Texas and Louisiana. Winter habitats include coastal marshes, wet meadows and freshwater marshes.
Population: Currently two populations of white-fronted geese are recognized: the Pacific Population and the Mid-Continent Population. Numbers of Pacific Population white-fronted geese have increased steadily over the last decade.
Food habits: The white-fronted goose is primarily a grazer and feeds on marsh grasses, grain crops, tundra plants, aquatic plants and fresh plant growth in fields. They also eat berries, aquatic insects and their larvae.
Average length: M 29", F 27"
Average weight: M 6.2 lbs., F 5.5 lbs.
Description: The white-fronted goose is named for the distinctive white band found at the base of bill. The sexes are similar in appearance, but males typically are larger. The head, neck and upper back of white-fronted geese are grayish-brown. The lower back and rump are dark brown, and the tail is dark brown and edged with white. The chest and breast are grayish with dark brown to black blotches and bars on the breast, giving it the nickname "specklebelly." The belly and upper and lower coverts are white. The bill is pinkish and the legs and feet are orange.
Breeding: White-fronted geese are circumpolar in their breeding distribution. The majority of white-fronted geese in North America breed near the Arctic Circle from Alaska to central Canada. They are solitary breeders and nest on both tidal flats and upland areas, most frequently among tall grass and sedges bordering sloughs and marshes. Female white-fronted geese lay an average of 5 eggs.
Migrating and Wintering: White-fronted geese migrate along the Pacific or Central flyways and winter in California's Central Valley, coastal and mid-continent Mexico and coastal Texas and Louisiana. Winter habitats include coastal marshes, wet meadows and freshwater marshes.
Population: Currently two populations of white-fronted geese are recognized: the Pacific Population and the Mid-Continent Population. Numbers of Pacific Population white-fronted geese have increased steadily over the last decade.
Food habits: The white-fronted goose is primarily a grazer and feeds on marsh grasses, grain crops, tundra plants, aquatic plants and fresh plant growth in fields. They also eat berries, aquatic insects and their larvae.
Egyptian
Egyptian Geese come from Africa, and are named Egyptian Geese because the Egyptians kept them for many years as poultry. They are in a sense, duck-like as well. The males hiss like Muscovy Ducks, where the female has a loud call like a "Hawww", "Hawww", and a duck like "WACK", "WACK", "WACK" given in alarm, defense, or calling for a mate in flight. They fly really well, and can dive from the sky and "land on a dime". They also use their wings to fly over a pond...rather than swimming across it. They are extremely aggressive when nesting, and will attack people with out any question. Although it is called a "goose", this bird is really a species of shelduck.
Egyptian Geese are large, bulky goose-like in structure with markedly long pink legs. General coloration buffish, with darker upperparts, paler head, and dark brown facial and belly patches and collar. Head and neck pale buffish, with chocolate-brown patch surrounding eye and base of bill. Some brown motling on crown and neck. Dark rusty-brown collar encircles lower neck. Upper mantle, breast and almost entire underparts buffish or greyish-buff, becoming paler on flanks and shitish on belly and ventral region. Variably extensive chocolate-brown patches in center of lower breast. Back, rump, uppertail-coverts and tail black. Upperwing-coverts white, with dark line along length of greater coverts, contrasting with blackish flight feathers and primary coverts. Secondaries glossed mettalic green or purple. Bill pink, with dusky nail, cutting edges and mottling about nostrils and very base. Legs and feet pink. Iris pale yellowish, sometimes brown.
Size: 25-29 inches.
Male: Males usually larger than females.
Female: The female can be distinguished by her trumpet like quaking, in contrast with the male's soft, husky calls.
Nest: A hollow in the ground under vegetation, or a hole in a cliff, cave, or tree.
Voice: Not particularly vocal, although social disputes provoke much calling from both sexes. Male utters a harsh, wheezy hiss. Female has a guttural, strident, almost braying cackle, "honk-haah-haah-haah".
Habitat: Freshwater lakes and rivers of almost any description.
Food: They eat grasses, and other vegetation, but since they are not true geese, they also will feed heavily on insects...such as crickets.
In Flight: Goose-like shape and extensive white forewing above and below, contrasting with blackish flight feathers.