4th Cyprus Record
www.birdingtourscyprus-bitw.com
www.twitter.com/Birdingtourscyp
www.facebook.com/BirdingToursCyprus.BITW
The Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus) is a member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. It is native to Africa south of the Sahara and the Nile Valley.

Egyptian geese were considered sacred by the Ancient Egyptians, and appeared in much of their artwork. They have been raised for food and extensively bred in parts of Africa since they were domesticated by the ancient Egyptians. Because of their popularity chiefly as ornamental bird, escapes are common and small feral populations have become established in Western Europe.[2][3]

Taxonomy:
The Egyptian goose is believed to be most closely related to the shelducks (genus Tadorna) and their relatives, and is placed with them in the subfamily Tadorninae. It is the only extant member of the genus Alopochen, which also contains closely related prehistoric and recently extinct species. mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data suggest that the relationships of Alopochen to Tadorna need further investigation.[4]

The generic name is based on Greek ἀλώπηξ (alopex'), "fox", and χήν (chen) "goose", referring to the ruddy colour of its back. The species name aegyptius is from the Latin Aegyptius, "Egyptian".[5]

Description:
It swims well, and in flight looks heavy, more like a goose than a duck, hence the English name.[6] It is 63–73 cm (25–29 in) long.

The sexes of this species are identical in plumage but the males average slightly larger. There is a fair amount of variation in plumage tone, with some birds greyer and others browner, but this is not sex- or age-related. A large part of the wings of mature birds is white, but in response the white is hidden by the wing coverts. When it is aroused, either in alarm or aggression, the white begins to show. In flight or when the wings are fully spread in aggression, the white is conspicuous.[7]

The voices and vocalisations of the sexes differ, the male having a hoarse, subdued duck-like quack which seldom sounds unless it is aroused. The male Egyptian goose attracts its mate with an elaborate, noisy courtship display that includes honking, neck stretching and feather displays.[8] The female has a far noisier raucous quack that frequently sounds in aggression and almost incessantly at the slightest disturbance when tending her young.[9]

Distribution:
This species breeds widely in Africa except in deserts and dense forests, and is locally abundant. They are found mostly in the Nile Valley and south of the Sahara. While not breeding, it disperses somewhat, sometimes making longer migrations northwards into arid regions of the Sahel.[7] It has also been introduced elsewhere: Great Britain, the Netherlands, France, and Germany have self-sustaining populations which are mostly derived from escaped ornamental birds.[2] Escapes have also bred on occasion in other places, such as Florida and New Zealand.[2] The British population dates back to the 18th century, though only formally added to the British list in 1971.[10] In Britain, it is found mainly in East Anglia, in parkland with lakes.[11] It was officially declared a pest in the U.K. in 2009.[12]

Behaviour:
This is a largely terrestrial species, which will also perch readily on trees and buildings. Egyptian geese typically eat seeds, leaves, grasses, and plant stems. Occasionally, they will eat locusts, worms, or other small animals.

Both sexes are aggressively territorial towards their own species when breeding and frequently pursue intruders into the air, attacking them in aerial "dogfights".[9] Neighbouring pairs may even kill another's offspring for their own offsprings' survival as well as for more resources.[13]

This species will nest in a large variety of situations, especially in holes in mature trees in parkland. The female builds the nest from reeds, leaves and grass, and both parents take turns incubating eggs.[8] Egyptian geese usually pair for life. Both the male and female care for the offspring until they are old enough to care for themselves.[13]

References:
BirdLife International (2012). "Alopochen aegyptiaca". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
Braun, D.G. (2004). "First documented nesting in the wild of Egyptian Geese in Florida" (PDF). Florida Field Naturalist. 32 (4): 138–143.
Dohner, Janet V. (2001). The Encyclopedia of Historic and Endangered Livestock and Poultry Breeds. Yale University Press. ISBN 030013813X.
Sraml, M.; Christidis, L.; Easteal, S.; Horn, P.; Collet, C. (1996). "Molecular Relationships Within Australasian Waterfowl (Anseriformes)". Australian Journal of Zoology. 44 (1): 47–58. doi:10.1071/ZO9960047.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 33, 42. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
"What characteristics distinguish Egyptian Geese?". Archived from the original on 16 June 2013.
Madge, Steve; Burn, Hilary (1988). Waterfowl: An Identification Guide to the Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. pp. 170–171. ISBN 0-395-46727-6.
"Egyptian Goose Fact Sheet". Lincoln Park Zoo. Archived from the original on 19 Jul 2011.
MacLean, Gordon L.; Roberts, Austin (1988). Roberts Birds of Southern Africa. Hyperion Books. ISBN 978-1-85368-037-3.
Holloway, Simon (2010). The Historical Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland 1875-1900. A & C Black. ISBN 9781408128664.
"Egyptian goose". RSPB. 13 December 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
McCarthy, Michael (30 September 2009). "Britain's naturalised parrot now officially a pest". The Independent. London. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
"Egyptian Goose". Honolulu Zoo. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012.

Tags:   Cyprus Birding Tours Cyprus Birdwatching Tours bird nature flickr canon cyprus colour color sunny bright wildlife rare rarities Cyprus Birds Cyprus Birding Cyprus Bird Watching Cyprus Guided Tours Bird Migration European Birds Ecotours Cyprus Ecotours Cyprus Safari safari High Quality Birding Birdwatching No IS No Image Stabilizer Handheld Birding Tours Cyprus Birdwatching Tours Cyprus Animal Outdoor Professional Photography Western Palearctic National Geographic BBC Earth Birdwatch RSPB Birdlife International Twitch Art Ethical photography

© All Rights Reserved

The greater white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons) is a species of goose. The greater white-fronted goose is closely related to the smaller lesser white-fronted goose (A. erythropus). In Europe it has been known as simply "white-fronted goose"; in North America it is known as the greater white-fronted goose (or "greater whitefront"), and this name is also increasingly adopted internationally.[1] It is named for the patch of white feathers bordering the base of its bill. But even more distinctive are the salt-and-pepper markings on the breast of adult birds, which is why the goose is colloquially called the "specklebelly" in North America.[2] Anser is the Latin for "goose", and albifrons comes from the Latin albus "white " and frons " forehead ".[3]

Description:
Greater white-fronted geese are 64–81 cm (25–32 in) in length, have a 130–165 cm (51–65 in) wingspan and weigh 1.93–3.31 kg (4.3–7.3 lb).[4][5] They have bright orange legs and mouse-coloured upper wing-coverts. They are smaller than greylag geese. As well as being larger than the lesser white-fronted goose, the greater white-fronted goose lacks the yellow eye-ring of that species, and the white facial blaze does not extend upwards so far as in lesser.[6]

The male is typical larger in size, both sexes are similar in appearance—greyish brown birds with light grey breasts dappled with dark brown to black blotches and bars. Both males and females also have a pinkish bill and orange legs and feet.[2]

Differences between European and Greenland birds:
The appearance of European or Russian white-fronted geese, of the race albifrons and Greenland white-fronted geese, of the race flavirostris, differ in a number of ways. The Greenland white-fronted goose, in all plumages, looks darker and more 'oily-looking' than the European white-fronted goose, both at rest and in flight.[7]

The following are the differences which apply to first-winter plumage:[7]

The mantle and scapulars of flavirostris have narrow, indistinct pale fringes creating a uniform appearance to the birds' upperparts, whereas albifrons has noticeable whitish fringes creating obviously barred upperparts
The tertials of flavirostris have indistinct pale fringes, whereas these pale fringes are more noticeable on albifrons
The lesser- and median-upperwing-coverts of flavirostris have narrow, indistinct pale fringes, creating a rather uniform appearance to the wing, whereas on albifrons, these fringes are prominent and broad, creating wing-bars
The greater-coverts of flavirostris are dark grey, with a narrow white tip, forming a narrow wing-bar; on albifrons they are blue-grey, with prominent white tips, forming a bold wing-bar
The flank-line is narrows and white on flavirostris, but broad and bright white on albifrons
The tail of flavirostris is dark brown, with a very narrow white tip and sides; that of albifrons is dark grey, and the white tip and sides are at least double the width of the corresponding areas on flavirostris
The bill of flavirostris is orange-yellow with a dark nail, compared with the bright pink bill of albifrons which has only a hint of dark on the nail; in addition the bill of flavirostris is longer and appears slimmer than that of albifrons

The belly-barring on adult birds is on average more extensive on flavirostris than on albifrons, but the individual variation in both forms renders this of limited use as an identification feature.[7]

The bill of adult Greenland white-fronts are also orange-yellow at the base, but can be more pinkish-yellow on the outer-half, thus close in colour to European white-fronts; the colour difference is more easily determined in dull, flat light rather than bright sunshine.[7]

Taxonomy:
The greater white-fronted goose is divided into five subspecies. The nominate subspecies A. a. albifrons breeds in the far north of Europe and Asia, and winters further south and west in Europe.

Three other restricted-range races occur in northern North America: A. a. gambeli in interior northwest Canada, and wintering on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, slightly larger than the nominate form, Pacific white-fronted goose, A. a. frontalis and tule goose, A. a. elgasi, in southwest Alaska, largest and longest-billed of all, both wintering in California. All these races are similar in plumage, differing only in size.[8]

The very distinct Greenland white-fronted goose, A. a. flavirostris, breeding in western Greenland, is much darker overall, with only a very narrow white tip to the tail (broader on the other races), more black barring on its belly, and usually has an orange (not pink) bill. It winters in Ireland and western Scotland.

Birds breeding in the far east of Siberia east to Arctic Canada, wintering in the United States and Japan, have been described as A. a. frontalis on the basis of their slightly larger size and a marginally longer bill. Another putative East Asian subspecies albicans has also been described. A 2012 study has found that frontalis and albicans do not merit subspecies status, the former being synonymised with gambelli and the latter with the nominate subspecies; this study found that these forms had been named on the wintering grounds from specimens whose breeding grounds were unknown.[9]

Ecological studies in 2002 suggest the Greenland birds should probably be considered a separate species from A. albifrons.[10] Of particular interest is its unusually long period of parental care and association, which may last several years and can include grandparenting, possibly uniquely among the Anseriformes.

Distribution:
The North American midcontinent birds of the subspecies A. a. gambeli—which in 2010 had a fall population of about 710,000 birds—breeds from the Alaska North Slope across the western and central Canadian Arctic.[citation needed] The Pacific white-fronted goose of the American Pacific coast, which in 2010 numbered approximately 650,000 birds,[citation needed] and the tule geese, which are estimated to number 10,000 birds, nest in western Alaska. The midcontinent geese gather in early fall on the prairies of western Saskatchewan and eastern Alberta, spending several weeks feeding before heading to wintering areas near the Gulf of Mexico, into northern Mexico.[2] The Pacific birds migrate south down the Pacific coast, staging primarily in the Klamath Basin of southern Oregon and northern California and wintering, eventually, in California's Central Valley.[2] The tule goose is somewhat rare and has been since the latter half of the 19th century,[11] presumably it was affected by destruction of its wintering habitat due to human settlement.[8]

In the British Isles, two races overwinter: Greenland birds in Scotland and Ireland, and Russian birds in England and Wales. They gather on farmland at favoured traditional sites, with a famous flock gathering at WWT Slimbridge, Gloucestershire, England.[12] Greenland birds also overwinter in Ireland and from late September and through the winter months, Ireland is home to almost 50% of the Greenland population of white-fronted geese.[13]

A. a. albifrons and A. a. flavirostis are among the taxa to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies.

Behaviour and ecology:
Weather conditions are a key factor in the annual breeding success of white-fronted geese. In the Arctic, the window of opportunity for nesting, incubating eggs, and raising a brood to flight state is open briefly, for about three months. Arriving in late May or early June, white-fronted geese begin departing for fall staging areas in early September. This means that a delayed snowmelt or late spring storm can significantly reduce the birds' reproductive success.[2]

Origin of Migration:
Midcontinent white fronted geese have many breeding area from North America and each white fronted geese group in each breeding area has differences in migration time and the location to winter. There are 6 breeding areas including 1)interior Alaska, 2)North Slope of Alaska, 3)Western Northwest Territories, 4)Western Nunavut, 5) Central Nunavut, and 6) Eastern Nunavut. These spatial differences lead to time differences for White Fronted Geese to leave their breeding area and differences in location to winter. Birds from interior Alaska start migrating earlier during autumn and fly farther south to winter.[14]

Fattening before migratory flight:
Breeding environment has a large impact on the success of migratory flight which include the temperature of the environment. Migratory bird that has faster fattening rate when foraging in colder environment.[15]

Backtracking technique:
Ways to track migratory path of Greater white-fronted goose have been the same for most research. There is one research that does not only look at the collective data from the whole population but an individual. This searcher from Austrian Institute of Technology named Micha Horacek, believes types of feather growing on a single migratory bird can be a way to backtrack the migratory route of a migratory bird that was infected by bird flu. Therefore, once a migratory bird is found sick, the affected area can be measured and marked. Bird feather grown in a time line which can be used as timeline for nutritional intake during the migratory flight. This allows people to understand the route which the infected bird took and determine the region affected by that particular bird flu. During migratory flight, feathers on White Fronted geese gradually fall off during migration as new feathers grows. This renewing of feather become a record book for the migratory journey. Every environment has its own distinct signature that is recorded in isotope signal of Carbon, Hydrogen, Nitrogen and Sulfur isotope level and these signal were picked up by migratory birds by ingesting native resources. Even though food were digested, the basic element still has isotope signal that tells people where these elements are from. Feathers were collected, washed and dried with an oven at temperature less than 45 degree Celsius. Then varies measuring instruments were used such as thermal combustion elemental analyser for Hydrogen and Vario 3 elemental analyser for Carbon, Nitrogen and Sulfur. These signals are recorded onto the feather that were growing during the migration. There are different types of feathers on Great white fronted geese that have different growing rate and these growing rate can be seen as time table as to the time each isotope signals were picked up. This isotope signal can be analyzed and compare to the isotope signal collected from each environment. This allows researcher to understand the migratory path of an infected bird and understand estimate the effected region within the migratory path. The result include extreme depletion in 2H on Primary feathers which represent the environment condition in arctic Siberia. However, more analysis needs to be done on feathers of local bird species in varies environment which allows more comparable data to match with feathers of migratory bird.[16]
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The greylag goose (Anser anser) is a bird in the waterfowl family Anatidae. It has mottled and barred grey and white plumage and an orange beak and legs. A large bird, it measures between 74 and 91 centimetres (29 and 36 in) in length, with an average weight of 3.3 kilograms (7.3 lb). Its distribution is widespread, with birds from the north of its range in Europe and Asia migrating southwards to spend the winter in warmer places. It is the type species of the genus Anser and is the ancestor of the domestic goose, having been domesticated at least as early as 1360 BC. The genus name is from anser, the Latin for "goose".[2]

Greylag geese travel to their northerly breeding grounds in spring, nesting on moorlands, in marshes, around lakes and on coastal islands. They normally mate for life and nest on the ground among vegetation. A clutch of three to five eggs is laid; the female incubates the eggs and both parents defend and rear the young. The birds stay together as a family group, migrating southwards in autumn as part of a flock, and separating the following year. During the winter they occupy semi-aquatic habitats, estuaries, marshes and flooded fields, feeding on grass and often consuming agricultural crops.

Taxonomy:
Anser anser, the greylag goose, is a member of the waterfowl family Anatidae. It was first described by the Swedish naturalist Carl Linnaeus in 1758 as Anas anser, but was transferred two years later to the new genus Anser, erected by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson, where it is the type species. Two subspecies are recognised; A. a. anser, the western greylag goose, breeds in Iceland and north and central Europe; A. a. rubrirostris, the eastern greylag goose, breeds in Romania, Turkey and Russia eastwards to northeastern China. The two subspecies intergrade where their ranges meet. The greylag goose sometimes hybridises with other species of goose including the barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis) and the Canada goose (Branta canadensis), and occasionally with the mute swan (Cygnus olor).[3] The greylag goose was one of the first animals to be domesticated; this happened at least 3000 years ago in Ancient Egypt, the domestic breed being known as A. a. domesticus.[4] As the domestic goose is a subspecies of the greylag goose they are able to interbreed, with the offspring sharing characteristics of both the wild and tame birds.[5]

Description:
The greylag is the largest and bulkiest of the grey geese of the genus Anser, but is more lightly built and agile than its domestic relative. It has a rotund, bulky body, a thick and long neck, and a large head and bill. It has pink legs and feet, and an orange or pink bill with a white or brown nail (hard horny material at tip of upper mandible).[6] It is 74 to 91 centimetres (29 to 36 in) long with a wing length of 41.2 to 48 centimetres (16.2 to 18.9 in). It has a tail 6.2 to 6.9 centimetres (2.4 to 2.7 in), a bill of 6.4 to 6.9 centimetres (2.5 to 2.7 in) long, and a tarsus of 7.1 to 9.3 centimetres (2.8 to 3.7 in). It weighs 2.16 to 4.56 kilograms (4.8 to 10.1 lb), with a mean weight of around 3.3 kilograms (7.3 lb). The wingspan is 147 to 180 centimetres (58 to 71 in).[7][8][9] Males are generally larger than females, with the sexual dimorphism more pronounced in the eastern subspecies rubirostris, which is larger than the nominate subspecies on average.[6]

The plumage of the greylag goose is greyish-brown, with a darker head and paler breast and belly with a variable amount of black spotting. It has a pale grey fore-wing and rump which are noticeable when the bird is in flight or stretches its wings on the ground. It has a white line bordering its upper flanks, and its wing coverts are light-coloured, contrasting with its darker flight feathers. Its plumage is patterned by the pale fringes of the feathers. Juveniles differ mostly in their lack of black-speckling on the breast and belly and by their greyish legs.[6][10]

The greylag goose has a loud cackling call similar to that of the domestic goose, "aahng-ung-ung", uttered on the ground or in flight. There are various subtle variations used under different circumstances, and individual geese seem to be able to identify other known geese by their voices. The sound made by a flock of geese resembles the baying of hounds.[11] Goslings chirp or whistle lightly, and adults hiss if threatened or angered.[6]

Distribution and habitat:
This species has a Palearctic distribution. The nominate subspecies breeds in Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, the Baltic States, northern Russia, Poland, eastern Hungary and Romania. It also breeds locally in the United Kingdom, Denmark, Germany, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Macedonia. The eastern race extends eastwards across a broad swathe of Asia to China.[11] European birds migrate southwards to the Mediterranean region and North Africa. Asian birds migrate to Baluchistan, Azerbaijan, Iran, Pakistan, northern India, Bangladesh and eastward to China.[11]> In North America, there are both feral domestic geese, which are similar to greylags, and occasional vagrant greylags.[10] Greylag geese seen in the wild in New Zealand probably originated from the escape of farmyard geese,[12] and a similar thing has happened in Australia where feral birds are now established in the east and southeast of the country.[13]

In their breeding quarters, they are found on moors with scattered lochs, in marshes, fens and peat-bogs, besides lakes and on little islands some way out to sea. They like dense ground cover of reeds, rushes, heather, bushes and willow thickets. In their winter quarters, they frequent salt marshes, estuaries, freshwater marshes, steppes, flooded fields, bogs and pasture near lakes, rivers and streams. They also visit agricultural land where they feed on winter cereals, rice, beans or other crops, moving at night to shoals and sand-banks on the coast, mud-banks in estuaries or secluded lakes.[11] Large numbers of immature birds congregate each year to moult on the Rone Islands near Gotland in the Baltic Sea.[14]

In Great Britain, their numbers had declined as a breeding bird, retreating north to breed wild only in the Outer Hebrides and the northern mainland of Scotland. However, during the 20th century, feral populations have been established elsewhere, and they have now re-colonised much of England. These populations are increasingly coming into contact.[15]

Behaviour:
Greylag geese are herbivorous and feed chiefly on grasses. Short, actively growing grass is more nutritious and greylag geese are often found grazing in pastures with sheep or cows.[16] Because of its low nutrient status, they need to feed for much of their time; the herbage passes rapidly through the gut and is voided frequently.[17] The tubers of sea clubrush (Bolboschoenus maritimus) are also taken as well as berries and water plants such as duckweed (Lemna) and floating sweetgrass (Glyceria fluitans). In wintertime they eat grass and leaves but also glean grain on cereal stubbles and sometimes feed on growing crops, especially during the night. They have been known to feed on oats, wheat, barley, buckwheat, lentils, peas and root crops. Acorns are sometimes consumed, and on the coast, seagrass (Zostera sp.) may be eaten.[11] In the 1920s in Britain, the pink-footed goose "discovered" that potatoes were edible and started feeding on waste potatoes. The greylag followed suit in the 1940s and now regularly searches for tubers on ploughed fields.[14]

These geese normally pair for life, so courtship only occurs at the time of first maturity. The nest is on the ground among heather, rushes, dwarf shrubs or reeds, or on a raft of floating vegetation. It is built from pieces of reed, sprigs of heather, grasses and moss, mixed with small feathers and down. A typical clutch is four to six eggs, but fewer eggs or larger numbers are not unusual. The eggs are creamy-white at first but soon become stained, and average 85 by 58 millimetres (3.3 by 2.3 in). They are mostly laid on successive days and incubation starts after the last one is laid. The female does the incubation, which lasts about twenty-eight days, while the male remains on guard somewhere near. The chicks are precocial and able to leave the nest soon after hatching. Both parents are involved in their care and they soon learn to peck at food and become fully-fledged at eight or nine weeks,[11] about the same time as their parents regain their ability to fly after moulting their main wing and tail feathers a month earlier.[16] Immature birds undergo a similar moult, and move to traditional, safe locations before doing so because of their vulnerability while flightless.[16]

Greylag geese are gregarious birds and form flocks. This has the advantage for the birds that the vigilance of some individuals in the group allows the rest to feed without having to constantly be alert to the approach of predators. After the eggs hatch, some grouping of families occur, enabling the geese to defend their young by their joint actions, such as mobbing or attacking predators.[16] After driving off a predator, a gander will return to its mate and give a "triumph call", a resonant honk followed by a low-pitched cackle, uttered with neck extended forward parallel with the ground. The mate and even unfledged young reciprocate in kind.[11]

Young greylags stay with their parents as a family group, migrating with them in a larger flock, and only dispersing when the adults drive them away from their newly established breeding territory the following year.[17] At least in Europe, patterns of migration are well understood and follow traditional routes with known staging sites and wintering sites. The young learn these locations from their parents which normally stay together for life.[14] Greylags leave their northern breeding areas relatively late in the autumn, for example completing their departure from Iceland by November, and start their return migration as early as January. Birds that breed in Iceland overwinter in the British Isles; those from Central Europe overwinter as far south as Spain and North Africa; others migrate down to the Balkans, Turkey and Iraq for the winter.[18]
In human culture
Ancient Egyptian stele showing Amun-Ra as goose, man, and ram. 25th dynasty, c. 700 B.C.

The greylag was once revered across Eurasia. It was linked with the goddess of healing, Gula, a forerunner of the Sumerian fertility goddess Ishtar, in the cities of the Tigris-Euphrates delta over 5,000 years ago.[19] In Ancient Egypt, geese symbolised the sun god Ra. In Ancient Greece and Rome, they were associated with the goddess of love, Aphrodite, and goose fat was used as an aphrodisiac. Since they were sacred birds, they were kept on Rome's Capitoline Hill, from where they raised the alarm when the Gauls attacked in 390 B.C.[19]
Wood engraving "The Tame Goose, Anas anser" by Thomas Bewick, A History of British Birds, 1804

The goose's role in fertility survives in modern British tradition in the nursery rhyme Goosey Goosey Gander, which preserves its sexual overtones ("And in my lady's chamber"), while "to goose" still has a sexual meaning.[19] The tradition of pulling a wishbone derives from the tradition of eating a roast goose at Michaelmas, where the goose bone was once believed to have the powers of an oracle. For that festival, in Thomas Bewick's time, geese were driven in thousand-strong flocks on foot from farms all over the East of England to London's Cheapside market, covering some 8 or 9 miles (13 or 14 km) per day. Some farmers painted the geese's feet with tar and sand to protect them from road wear as they walked.[19]

Greylag geese were domesticated by at least 1360 B.C., when images of domesticated birds resembling the Eastern race, Anser anser rubirostris (which like modern farmyard geese, but unlike Western greylags, have a pink beak) were painted in Ancient Egypt. Goose feathers were used as quill pens, the best being the primary feathers of the left wing, whose "curvature bent away from the eyes of right-handed writers".[20] The feathers also served to fletch arrows.[19] In ethology, the greylag goose was the subject of Konrad Lorenz's pioneering studies of imprinting behaviour.[21]

References:
BirdLife International (2012). "Anser albifrons". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
"Ducks Unlimited, July/August 2011". Ducks.org. Retrieved 2013-02-27.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 38, 48. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
"Greater White-fronted Goose". All About Birds. Cornell Lab of Ornithology.
Dunning, John B., Jr., ed. (1992). CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses. CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-4258-5.
Perrins, Christopher M.; Attenborough, David (1987). New Generation Guide to the Birds of Britain and Europe. Austin, TX: University of Texas Press. pp. 76–77. ISBN 0-292-75532-5.
Kemp, John (2001). "Identification of Greenland White-fronted Goose". Birding World. 14 (3): 103–105.
Carboneras, Carles (1992). del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi, eds. Family Anatidae (Ducks, Geese and Swans). Handbook of Birds of the World. Volume 1: Ostrich to Ducks. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions. pp. 536–629, plates 40–50. ISBN 84-87334-10-5.
Banks, R.C. (2011). "Taxonomy of Greater White-fronted Geese (Aves: Anatidae)". Proceedings of the Biological Society of Washington. 124 (3): 226–233. doi:10.2988/11-14.1.
Fox, A.D.; Stroud, D.A. (2002). "Greenland White-fronted Goose". Birds of the Western Palearctic Update. 4 (2): 65–88.
Littlejohn, Chase (1916). "Some unusual records for San Mateo County, California. Minutes of Cooper Club Meetings". Condor. 18 (1): 38–40. doi:10.2307/1362896. JSTOR 1362896.
"Slimbrdge Seasonal Birding Guide – Winter, January – March". Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust Limited. 2011. Retrieved 25 February 2012.
"Peatlands". Peatlandsni.gov.uk. 12 January 2011. Retrieved 27 February 2013.
Ely, Craig R.; Nieman, Daniel J.; Alisauskas, Ray T.; Schmutz, Joel A.; Hines, James E. (2013). "Geographic variation in migration chronology and winter distribution of midcontinent greater white-fronted geese". The Journal of Wildlife Management. 77 (6): 1182–1191. doi:10.1002/jwmg.573.
Devost, Isabelle; Hallot, Fanny; Milbergue, Myriam; Petit, Magali; Vézina, François (2014). "Lipid metabolites as markers of fattening rate in a non-migratory passerine: Effects of ambient temperature and individual variation". Comparative Biochemistry and Physiology A. 177: 18–26. doi:10.1016/j.cbpa.2014.07.014.
Horacek, Micha (2011). "Backtracking the movements of a migratory bird: a case study of a white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons)". Rapid Communications in Mass Spectrometry. 25 (20): 3146–3150. doi:10.1002/rcm.5209.
BirdLife International (2012). "Anser anser". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2012: e.T22679889A40116131. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2012-1.RLTS.T22679889A40116131.en. Retrieved 29 August 2016.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. p. 48. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
Carboneras, Kirwan & Garcia 2014.
Hugo, Susanne (2002). "Chapter 1: Origins and Breeds of Domestic Geese". In Buckland, Roger; Guy, Gérard. Geese: the underestimated species. FAO Agriculture Department. ISSN 0254-6019.
"Domestic Geese". British Waterfowl Association. Retrieved 2 June 2016.
Madge & Burn 1988, pp. 140–141
Dunning 1992
Ogilvie & Young 2004
"Greylag Goose". oiseaux-birds.com. Retrieved 17 October 2011.
Johnsgard 2010, p. 60
Witherby 1943, pp. 149-186.
Southey, I.; Miskelly, C.M. (ed.) (2013). "Greylag goose". New Zealand Birds Online. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
"Greylag goose". Gaia Guide. Retrieved 24 October 2015.
Alerstam & Christie 1993, pp. 90–96.
Mitchell, Carl; Hearn, Richard; Stroud, David (4 September 2012). "The merging of populations of Greylag Geese breeding in Britain". British Birds. Archived from the original on 23 February 2014. Retrieved 17 November 2013.
Scheiber et al. 2013, pp. 9–10.
"Greylag goose (Anser anser)". Wildscreen Arkive. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
"Greylag Goose ( Anser anser ) movements" (PDF). British Trust for Ornithology. Retrieved 24 October 2015. stated to be from Delany, S.; Veen, J.; Clark, J.A., eds. (2006). Urgent preliminary assessment of ornithological data relevant to the spread of Avian Influenza in Europe. Report to the European Commission. Study contract: 07010401/2005/425926/MAR/B4.
Cocker & Mabey 2005, pp. 74–76.
Rowland 1978, p. 69.

Allen & Bekoff 1999, pp. 30–31.

Works cited:
Alerstam, Thomas; Christie, David A. (1993). Bird Migration. Cambridge England, New York: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 978-0-521-44822-2.
Allen, Colin; Bekoff, Marc (1999). Species of Mind: The Philosophy and Biology of Cognitive Ethology. Cambridge, Massachusetts: MIT Press. pp. 30–31. ISBN 978-0-262-51108-7.
Carboneras, C.; Kirwan, G.M.; Garcia, E.F.J. (2014). "Greylag Goose (Anser anser)". Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
Cocker, Mark; Mabey, Richard (2005). Birds Britannica. London: Chatto & Windus. pp. 74–76. ISBN 0-7011-6907-9.
Dunning, John B., Jr., ed. (1992). CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses. Boca Raton, Florida: CRC Press. ISBN 978-0-8493-4258-5.
Johnsgard, Paul A. (2010) [1978]. Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World (revised online ed.). Lincoln, Nebraska: University of Nebraska Press.
Lorenz, Konrad Z.; Martys, Michael; Tipler, Angelika (1991). Here Am I—Where Are You? The Behavior of the Greylag Goose. translated by Robert D. Martin. Orlando, Florida: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich. ISBN 0-15-140056-3.
Madge, Steve; Burn, Hilary (1988). Waterfowl: an Identification Guide to the Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. ISBN 0-395-46727-6.
Ogilvie, Malcolm A.; Young, Steve (2004). Wildfowl of the World. London: New Holland Publishers. ISBN 978-1-84330-328-2.
Rowland, Beryl (1978). Birds with Human Souls: a Guide to Bird Symbolism. University of Tennessee Press. p. 69. ISBN 0870492152. ISBN 9780870492150.
Scheiber, Isabella B.R.; Weiß, Brigitte M.; Hemetsberger, Josef; Kotrschal, Kurt (2013). The Social Life of Greylag Geese. New York: Cambridge University Press. pp. 9–10. ISBN 978-0-521-82270-1.
Witherby, H. F. (ed.) (1943). Handbook of British Birds, Volume 3: Hawks to Ducks. London: H. F. and G. Witherby Ltd.
Wójcik, Ewa; Smalec, Elżbieta (2007). "Description of the Anser anser Goose Karyotype" (PDF). Folia Biol. Krakow. 55 (1–2): 35–40.

Tags:   bird nature flickr canon cyprus colour color sunny bright wildlife

© All Rights Reserved

Wild. 8th Cyprus Record
More Photos:
www.birdingtourscyprus-bitw.com/sightings/larnaca-and-pap...
The red-breasted goose (Branta ruficollis) is a brightly marked species of goose in the genus Branta from Eurasia. It is sometimes separated in Rufibrenta but appears close enough to the brant goose (Branta bernicla) to make this unnecessary, despite its distinct appearance. It is currently classified as vulnerable by the IUCN. Branta is a Latinised form of Old Norse Brandgás, "burnt (black) goose and ruficollis is from the Latin rufus "red" and collis "necked".[2]

Description:
All the species of the Branta genus are distinguished by their dark sooty colour, relieved by white, and as a distinction from the grey geese of the genus Anser. Among the species from these two genera, the red-breasted goose is the smallest at 53–56 cm (21–22 in) in length.[3] This brightly marked species is unmistakable, but can be surprisingly difficult to find amongst brent geese. At long distances, the red of the breast tends to look dark.[4]

Distribution:
The red-breasted goose breeds in Arctic Siberia, mainly on the Taymyr Peninsula, with smaller populations in the Gydan and Yamal peninsulas.[5] Most winter along the northwestern shores of the Black Sea in Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine (occasionally moving further southwest to Greece), but some winter in Azerbaijan.[5] It is a rare vagrant to Great Britain and other western European areas, where it is sometimes found with flocks of Brent or barnacle geese.[4] However, since it is common in captive wildfowl collections, escapees outside its usual range are fairly frequent. While incubating, the red-breasted goose stays within a 1.5km range of its nest.[6] Male red-breasted goose tend to guard the nest of their young from a distance while the females generally hide on the nest.[7] The main predator for red-breasted geese eggs and goslings is the Taimyr Gull which have access to nests located on river islands.[6]

They traditionally wintered in Kirov Bay in the Caspian Sea, but in the 1960s the area became unsuitable for the geese due to the agricultural change. Vineyards and cotton replaced the cereal crops used by the wintering geese. However, catastrophic population decline was avoided because they were able to alter their migration strategy and now winters in suitable habitats in Bulgaria and the Dobrogea region of Eastern Romania.[8]

In the late Pleistocene the species' range expanded southward to Bulgaria [9]

Calls of red-breasted goose – ki-kui or ki-yik, shrill and staccato.

The red-breasted goose often nests close to nests of birds of prey, such as snowy owls, peregrine falcons and rough-legged buzzards, which helps to protect this small goose from mammalian predators such as the Arctic fox.[3][4] The closer the nest to the eyrie, the safer the goose is from predation.[10] Based on the size and how timid the geese are, they rely on the eagles for defense. It's extremely unusual for the eagles to attack, but is still possible. Additionally, the larger the colony the safer it is. This in turn positively influences the survival and reproductive success of the red-breasted goose. Aside from nesting close to birds of prey, red-breasted geese nest on islands on rivers which also protects them from land-based predators.[6] However, there is evidence that the red-breasted goose will prefer to nest near birds of prey over the choice of a river island.[7] In contrast to the birds of prey that offer the red-breasted goose protection from predators, which choose to place their nests in the open cliff side, this goose will create a cryptic nest hidden much better than the birds of prey nests.[7] A typical red-breasted goose colony is around 4 pairs depending on nest location, food abundance, and bird of prey density.[6]

While wintering, the red-breasted goose feeds on grasses, leaves and seeds.[5] Since owl and buzzard populations fluctuate every few years, depending on lemming abundance, the only consistent protection from predators are river islands and the peregrine falcon.[6]

Conservation:
In Autumn of 1997 the population was estimated to be around 88,000 individuals.[11] In the Winter these numbers can shrink to around 70,000. The red-breasted goose is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. The red-breasted goose is legally protected in many states, however hunting is still continued. The AEWA is monitoring the species and providing up to date information on the status of the species, its habitat, migrations, ecology, and conservation needs.[12] 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. However, it is possible that this decline may have been exaggerated, as it is possible that some birds may winter at unknown sites. The species' winter distribution has already changed significantly since the 1960s when much of the population occurred along the western coast of the Caspian Sea, in Iran, and in Iraq. Some birds may now be wintering farther west as indicated by recorded counts of 2,000 birds in Hungary as of the winter of 2014, whereas counts previously only accounted for a few hundred. As it is not clear to what extent the known population fluctuates in this species—as in other Arctic geese—and given the worsening outlook for the species as a whole, the red-breasted goose was uplisted from a species of Least Concern to Endangered status in the 2007 IUCN Red List.[1][13] In 2015 it was relisted as Vulnerable.[1] There have been attempts to conserve the species, such as in 2005-2008, a Life-funded project in Romania was implemented so that the habitat quality of an important salt water lake used by the species was increased.[14] The Life Programme and AEWA hosted a workshop in February 2009 for the species that aimed to draft a new International Species Action Plan and report the results of the Life project.[12]

In 2011, Ornithologists from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB/BirdLife in Bulgaria) and the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust enacted a project that would lead to a greater understanding of the red-breasted geese's migration patterns. Six red-breasted geese were branded and given miniature GPS transmitters. The red-breasted geese will now be tracked via satellite. Scientist and conservationists alike hope that learning about the geese's migration patterns will lead to proper conservation and more aggressive policies in the geese's territory. Some prior counts have revealed a more positive discovery, noting an increase in the geese's population. This led to a prediction which states there may be over a fifty percent increase in their population.

In February of 2013, the Bulgarian court had overturned a decision which prohibited an energy wind project from continuing their work in an important winter site for the threatened red-breasted geese. The construction of wind turbines in the area not only threaten the geese by being an obstacle that they fly into. The area they are being constructed in will also deprive red-breasted geese of a critical feeding ground. As of now, an appeal had been sent to court to convince the court otherwise.

References:
BirdLife International (2015). "Branta ruficollis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2015: e.T22679954A84085554. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 77, 341. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
Ogilvie, Malcolm; Young (2002). Wildfowl of the World. p. 50. ISBN 1-84330-328-0.
Svensson, Lars (2009). Birds of Europe (2nd ed.). Princeton University Press. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-691-14392-7.
"Species factsheet: Branta ruficollis".
Prop, Jouke; Quinn, John (2003). Constrained by available raptor hosts and islands: density-dependent reproductive success in red-breasted geese (102 ed.). Oikos. p. 571.
Quinn, John (2003). "Predator protection or similar habitat selection in red-breasted goose nesting associations: extremes along a continuum". Animal Behavior. doi:10.1006/anbe.2003.2063.
Sutherland, W.J. & Crockford, N.J. 1993. Factors affecting the feeding distribution of Red-breasted Geese Branta ruficollis wintering in Romania. Biological Conservation 63:61-65.
Boev, Z. (1998). Sur la presеnce de la bernache a cou roux Branta ruficollis (Pallas, 1769) au wurm en Bulgarie. Branta. 3. pp. 18–19.
Quinn, John (April 2002). "Trading-off risks from predators and from aggressive hosts.". Springer Link. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
Quinn, John (April 2000). "Direct and Indirect Estimates of Peregrine Falcon Population Size in Northern Eurasia". The Auk. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
"Red-breasted Goose | AEWA International Working Group". www.redbreastedgoose.aewa.info. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
"What's new (2007)". BirdLife International. 2007. Archived from the original on 28 August 2007. Retrieved 26 August 2007.
Raduescu, L. 2013. Conservation efforts for Red-breasted Goose in Romania. TWSG News - Bulletin of the Wetlands International - IUCN SSC Threatened Waterfowl Specialist Group 16: 7.

Tags:   bird nature flickr canon cyprus colour color sunny bright wildlife endangered rare rarities

© All Rights Reserved

The Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus) is a member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. It is native to Africa south of the Sahara and the Nile Valley.

Egyptian geese were considered sacred by the Ancient Egyptians, and appeared in much of their artwork. They have been raised for food and extensively bred in parts of Africa since they were domesticated by the ancient Egyptians. Because of their popularity chiefly as ornamental bird, escapes are common and small feral populations have become established in Western Europe.[2][3]

Taxonomy:
The Egyptian goose is believed to be most closely related to the shelducks (genus Tadorna) and their relatives, and is placed with them in the subfamily Tadorninae. It is the only extant member of the genus Alopochen, which also contains closely related prehistoric and recently extinct species. mtDNA cytochrome b sequence data suggest that the relationships of Alopochen to Tadorna need further investigation.[4]

The generic name is based on Greek ἀλώπηξ (alopex'), "fox", and χήν (chen) "goose", referring to the ruddy colour of its back. The species name aegyptius is from the Latin Aegyptius, "Egyptian".[5]

Description:
It swims well, and in flight looks heavy, more like a goose than a duck, hence the English name.[6] It is 63–73 cm (25–29 in) long.

The sexes of this species are identical in plumage but the males average slightly larger. There is a fair amount of variation in plumage tone, with some birds greyer and others browner, but this is not sex- or age-related. A large part of the wings of mature birds is white, but in response the white is hidden by the wing coverts. When it is aroused, either in alarm or aggression, the white begins to show. In flight or when the wings are fully spread in aggression, the white is conspicuous.[7]

The voices and vocalisations of the sexes differ, the male having a hoarse, subdued duck-like quack which seldom sounds unless it is aroused. The male Egyptian goose attracts its mate with an elaborate, noisy courtship display that includes honking, neck stretching and feather displays.[8] The female has a far noisier raucous quack that frequently sounds in aggression and almost incessantly at the slightest disturbance when tending her young.[9]

Distribution:
This species breeds widely in Africa except in deserts and dense forests, and is locally abundant. They are found mostly in the Nile Valley and south of the Sahara. While not breeding, it disperses somewhat, sometimes making longer migrations northwards into arid regions of the Sahel.[7] It has also been introduced elsewhere: Great Britain, the Netherlands, France, and Germany have self-sustaining populations which are mostly derived from escaped ornamental birds.[2] Escapes have also bred on occasion in other places, such as Florida and New Zealand.[2] The British population dates back to the 18th century, though only formally added to the British list in 1971.[10] In Britain, it is found mainly in East Anglia, in parkland with lakes.[11] It was officially declared a pest in the U.K. in 2009.[12]

Behaviour:
This is a largely terrestrial species, which will also perch readily on trees and buildings. Egyptian geese typically eat seeds, leaves, grasses, and plant stems. Occasionally, they will eat locusts, worms, or other small animals.

Both sexes are aggressively territorial towards their own species when breeding and frequently pursue intruders into the air, attacking them in aerial "dogfights".[9] Neighbouring pairs may even kill another's offspring for their own offsprings' survival as well as for more resources.[13]

This species will nest in a large variety of situations, especially in holes in mature trees in parkland. The female builds the nest from reeds, leaves and grass, and both parents take turns incubating eggs.[8] Egyptian geese usually pair for life. Both the male and female care for the offspring until they are old enough to care for themselves.[13]

References:
BirdLife International (2012). "Alopochen aegyptiaca". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. International Union for Conservation of Nature. Retrieved 26 November 2013.
Braun, D.G. (2004). "First documented nesting in the wild of Egyptian Geese in Florida" (PDF). Florida Field Naturalist. 32 (4): 138–143.
Dohner, Janet V. (2001). The Encyclopedia of Historic and Endangered Livestock and Poultry Breeds. Yale University Press. ISBN 030013813X.
Sraml, M.; Christidis, L.; Easteal, S.; Horn, P.; Collet, C. (1996). "Molecular Relationships Within Australasian Waterfowl (Anseriformes)". Australian Journal of Zoology. 44 (1): 47–58. doi:10.1071/ZO9960047.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 33, 42. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
"What characteristics distinguish Egyptian Geese?". Archived from the original on 16 June 2013.
Madge, Steve; Burn, Hilary (1988). Waterfowl: An Identification Guide to the Ducks, Geese, and Swans of the World. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. pp. 170–171. ISBN 0-395-46727-6.
"Egyptian Goose Fact Sheet". Lincoln Park Zoo. Archived from the original on 19 Jul 2011.
MacLean, Gordon L.; Roberts, Austin (1988). Roberts Birds of Southern Africa. Hyperion Books. ISBN 978-1-85368-037-3.
Holloway, Simon (2010). The Historical Atlas of Breeding Birds in Britain and Ireland 1875-1900. A & C Black. ISBN 9781408128664.
"Egyptian goose". RSPB. 13 December 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2013.
McCarthy, Michael (30 September 2009). "Britain's naturalised parrot now officially a pest". The Independent. London. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
"Egyptian Goose". Honolulu Zoo. Archived from the original on 2 April 2012.

Tags:   bird nature flickr canon cyprus colour color sunny bright wildlife rare rarities

© All Rights Reserved

Wild. 8th Cyprus Record
* I can't but think this image would make a good clock ;)
The red-breasted goose (Branta ruficollis) is a brightly marked species of goose in the genus Branta from Eurasia. It is sometimes separated in Rufibrenta but appears close enough to the brant goose (Branta bernicla) to make this unnecessary, despite its distinct appearance. It is currently classified as vulnerable by the IUCN. Branta is a Latinised form of Old Norse Brandgás, "burnt (black) goose and ruficollis is from the Latin rufus "red" and collis "necked".[2]

Description:
All the species of the Branta genus are distinguished by their dark sooty colour, relieved by white, and as a distinction from the grey geese of the genus Anser. Among the species from these two genera, the red-breasted goose is the smallest at 53–56 cm (21–22 in) in length.[3] This brightly marked species is unmistakable, but can be surprisingly difficult to find amongst brent geese. At long distances, the red of the breast tends to look dark.[4]

Distribution:
The red-breasted goose breeds in Arctic Siberia, mainly on the Taymyr Peninsula, with smaller populations in the Gydan and Yamal peninsulas.[5] Most winter along the northwestern shores of the Black Sea in Bulgaria, Romania and Ukraine (occasionally moving further southwest to Greece), but some winter in Azerbaijan.[5] It is a rare vagrant to Great Britain and other western European areas, where it is sometimes found with flocks of Brent or barnacle geese.[4] However, since it is common in captive wildfowl collections, escapees outside its usual range are fairly frequent. While incubating, the red-breasted goose stays within a 1.5km range of its nest.[6] Male red-breasted goose tend to guard the nest of their young from a distance while the females generally hide on the nest.[7] The main predator for red-breasted geese eggs and goslings is the Taimyr Gull which have access to nests located on river islands.[6]

They traditionally wintered in Kirov Bay in the Caspian Sea, but in the 1960s the area became unsuitable for the geese due to the agricultural change. Vineyards and cotton replaced the cereal crops used by the wintering geese. However, catastrophic population decline was avoided because they were able to alter their migration strategy and now winters in suitable habitats in Bulgaria and the Dobrogea region of Eastern Romania.[8]

In the late Pleistocene the species' range expanded southward to Bulgaria [9]

Calls of red-breasted goose – ki-kui or ki-yik, shrill and staccato.

The red-breasted goose often nests close to nests of birds of prey, such as snowy owls, peregrine falcons and rough-legged buzzards, which helps to protect this small goose from mammalian predators such as the Arctic fox.[3][4] The closer the nest to the eyrie, the safer the goose is from predation.[10] Based on the size and how timid the geese are, they rely on the eagles for defense. It's extremely unusual for the eagles to attack, but is still possible. Additionally, the larger the colony the safer it is. This in turn positively influences the survival and reproductive success of the red-breasted goose. Aside from nesting close to birds of prey, red-breasted geese nest on islands on rivers which also protects them from land-based predators.[6] However, there is evidence that the red-breasted goose will prefer to nest near birds of prey over the choice of a river island.[7] In contrast to the birds of prey that offer the red-breasted goose protection from predators, which choose to place their nests in the open cliff side, this goose will create a cryptic nest hidden much better than the birds of prey nests.[7] A typical red-breasted goose colony is around 4 pairs depending on nest location, food abundance, and bird of prey density.[6]

While wintering, the red-breasted goose feeds on grasses, leaves and seeds.[5] Since owl and buzzard populations fluctuate every few years, depending on lemming abundance, the only consistent protection from predators are river islands and the peregrine falcon.[6]

Conservation:
In Autumn of 1997 the population was estimated to be around 88,000 individuals.[11] In the Winter these numbers can shrink to around 70,000. The red-breasted goose is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. The red-breasted goose is legally protected in many states, however hunting is still continued. The AEWA is monitoring the species and providing up to date information on the status of the species, its habitat, migrations, ecology, and conservation needs.[12] 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. However, it is possible that this decline may have been exaggerated, as it is possible that some birds may winter at unknown sites. The species' winter distribution has already changed significantly since the 1960s when much of the population occurred along the western coast of the Caspian Sea, in Iran, and in Iraq. Some birds may now be wintering farther west as indicated by recorded counts of 2,000 birds in Hungary as of the winter of 2014, whereas counts previously only accounted for a few hundred. As it is not clear to what extent the known population fluctuates in this species—as in other Arctic geese—and given the worsening outlook for the species as a whole, the red-breasted goose was uplisted from a species of Least Concern to Endangered status in the 2007 IUCN Red List.[1][13] In 2015 it was relisted as Vulnerable.[1] There have been attempts to conserve the species, such as in 2005-2008, a Life-funded project in Romania was implemented so that the habitat quality of an important salt water lake used by the species was increased.[14] The Life Programme and AEWA hosted a workshop in February 2009 for the species that aimed to draft a new International Species Action Plan and report the results of the Life project.[12]

In 2011, Ornithologists from the Bulgarian Society for the Protection of Birds (BSPB/BirdLife in Bulgaria) and the Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust enacted a project that would lead to a greater understanding of the red-breasted geese's migration patterns. Six red-breasted geese were branded and given miniature GPS transmitters. The red-breasted geese will now be tracked via satellite. Scientist and conservationists alike hope that learning about the geese's migration patterns will lead to proper conservation and more aggressive policies in the geese's territory. Some prior counts have revealed a more positive discovery, noting an increase in the geese's population. This led to a prediction which states there may be over a fifty percent increase in their population.

In February of 2013, the Bulgarian court had overturned a decision which prohibited an energy wind project from continuing their work in an important winter site for the threatened red-breasted geese. The construction of wind turbines in the area not only threaten the geese by being an obstacle that they fly into. The area they are being constructed in will also deprive red-breasted geese of a critical feeding ground. As of now, an appeal had been sent to court to convince the court otherwise.

References:
BirdLife International (2015). "Branta ruficollis". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN. 2015: e.T22679954A84085554. Retrieved 5 January 2016.
Jobling, James A (2010). The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names. London: Christopher Helm. pp. 77, 341. ISBN 978-1-4081-2501-4.
Ogilvie, Malcolm; Young (2002). Wildfowl of the World. p. 50. ISBN 1-84330-328-0.
Svensson, Lars (2009). Birds of Europe (2nd ed.). Princeton University Press. p. 22. ISBN 978-0-691-14392-7.
"Species factsheet: Branta ruficollis".
Prop, Jouke; Quinn, John (2003). Constrained by available raptor hosts and islands: density-dependent reproductive success in red-breasted geese (102 ed.). Oikos. p. 571.
Quinn, John (2003). "Predator protection or similar habitat selection in red-breasted goose nesting associations: extremes along a continuum". Animal Behavior. doi:10.1006/anbe.2003.2063.
Sutherland, W.J. & Crockford, N.J. 1993. Factors affecting the feeding distribution of Red-breasted Geese Branta ruficollis wintering in Romania. Biological Conservation 63:61-65.
Boev, Z. (1998). Sur la presеnce de la bernache a cou roux Branta ruficollis (Pallas, 1769) au wurm en Bulgarie. Branta. 3. pp. 18–19.
Quinn, John (April 2002). "Trading-off risks from predators and from aggressive hosts.". Springer Link. Behavioral Ecology and Sociobiology. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
Quinn, John (April 2000). "Direct and Indirect Estimates of Peregrine Falcon Population Size in Northern Eurasia". The Auk. Retrieved 29 October 2015.
"Red-breasted Goose | AEWA International Working Group". www.redbreastedgoose.aewa.info. Retrieved 2015-10-30.
"What's new (2007)". BirdLife International. 2007. Archived from the original on 28 August 2007. Retrieved 26 August 2007.
Raduescu, L. 2013. Conservation efforts for Red-breasted Goose in Romania. TWSG News - Bulletin of the Wetlands International - IUCN SSC Threatened Waterfowl Specialist Group 16: 7.

Tags:   bird nature flickr canon cyprus colour color sunny bright wildlife endangered rare rarities

© All Rights Reserved