Monday 17 November 2014

Pink-footed Goose (Anser brachyrhynchus)

OTHER NAMES: N/A
Latin Etymology: Anser ("Goose") brachyrhynchus ("short bill")

Flock of Pink-footed Goose (Anser brachyrhynchus) Onager Hill, Norfolk - March 2023

Featured Subspecies: N/A
Weight: 1.5-3.5kg  /  Length: 60-75cm  /  Wingspan: 135-170cm
UK AMBER LIST / IUCN Red List: Least Concern

The Pink-footed Goose is probably one of the best examples in the UK of a bird that could be described as locally common.  It visits Britain in the Winter in huge numbers in the areas surrounding some of the major estuary areas such as the Wash, but outside of these it occurs as a vagrant, often associated with other geese species.  This particular one for instance was associating with a large flock of Greylag Geese - a common species in the UK which it's worth checking the flocks of for other grey geese in Winter.  The birds that visit the UK have bred in Greenland and Iceland, while a second population from Svalbard Winters in the Netherlands and Denmark.

Related Species:
Order: Anseriformes
Family: Anatidae
Genus: Anser
Subspecies: None - monotypic

 - Sighting Locations -
UNITED KINGDOM - A locally numerous Winter visitor to certain sites - rare elsewhere.
 - Various locations around The Wash, a single bird at Eyebrooke Reservoir in November 2014. 

Further Notes: BirdForum OpusIUCN Red ListRSPBWikipedia, Xeno-canto

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