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Pink-footed Goose Anser brachyrhynchus [Baillon, 1834]
Other Names
Trends & Distribution
Breeding & Survival
Biometrics
Books & Links
Order:
Anseriformes
Family:
Anatidae
BTO Codes:
PG , PIFGO
EURING No:
1580
Number in Britain:
241 thousand birds (Winter)
Conservation Status:
UK:
AMBER
European:
Not a species of concern
Global:
Least Concern
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IBC
Status in UK:
(A) Winter Visitor
Subspecies:
Monotypic
.
Length:
68 cm
Wingspan:
152 cm
Weight:
M/F: 2.5 kg
Scientific name from:
L.: anser =a goose
and Gr.: brakhus =short + rhunkhos =bill
World Distribution:
BREEDS: e Greenland, Iceland, Spitsbergen, WINTERS: nw Europe
Habitat:
Tundra lakes, rivers & wet meadows
Diet:
Plant material, incl. roots, tubers, shoots, leaves, in winter now mostly on farmland
TitBit:
No-one is quite sure why skeins of geese fly in their characteristic V-shape, though the benefits are probably aerodynamic, reducing the cost of flying, but their arrival (in increasing numbers since a ban on the sale of geese in the 1970s) signals the sta
rt of winter
Population and Distribution
Population Trend:
No population trend available
Distribution:
New Atlas )
British Population Size:
Winter:
241 thousand individuals
in 1994-99
First Record:
1638
[Fossil evidence from
Devensian (last) glaciation, 10-120,000 yr ago]
Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):
No habitat data from BBS
European Population Size:
Summer:
50 to 69 thousand pairs
Birds in Europe
Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of:
WCA(II),WBD(II*), Bonn(II), AEWA
Survey Results:
Breeding and Survival
Egg Size:
78 x 52 mm
Egg Weight:
120.0 g (of which 10 % is shell)
Number of Nest Records:
0
Clutch Size:
4 - 5 eggs
Incubation:
26 - 27 days
by the:
Female
Fledging:
50 - 60 days
as:
Precocial, downy
First Clutches Laid:
Does not breed in Britain, or too few Nest Records
Number of Broods:
1
Number Ringed:
119
Adult Survival:
0.829
Juvenile Survival:
0.775 (to age . )
Age at First Breeding:
3
years
Typical Lifespan:
8
years
Maximum Recorded Age:
38yr7m
Biometrics
Ring Size:
K
Wing Length
Adult:
434.7 ± 28.7
Range
405 - 467 mm, N =59
Juvenile:
Insufficient Data.
Male:
441.9 ± 13.3
423 - 465 mm, N =23
Female:
425.2 ± 18.9
387 - 457 mm, N =35
Weight
Adult:
2.80 ± 0.32
Range
2.22 - 3.40 kg , N =58
Juvenile:
Insufficient Data.
Male:
2.88 ± 0.36
2.22 - 3.40 kg , N =23
Female:
2.74 ± 0.28 .
2.35 - 3.15 kg , N =35
Source:
British Trust for Ornithology (2005) Ringing Scheme data
Other Names
Split from A. fabalis
Gaelic:
Gèadh-dearg-chasach
Welsh:
Gwydd droed-binc
Danish:
Kortnæbbet gås
Dutch:
Kleine rietgans
Finnish:
Lyhytnokkahanhi
French:
Oie à bec court
German:
Kurzschnabelgans
Hungarian:
Rövidcsoru lúd
Icelandic:
Heiðagæs
Irish:
Gé Ghobghearr
Italian:
Oca zamperosee
Norwegian:
Kortnebbgås
Polish:
Ges krótkodzioba
Portuguese:
Ganso-de-bico-curto
Spanish:
Ansar piquicorto
Swedish:
Spetsbergsgås
Collective Noun: Skein
For More Information...
Books and Monographs:
Fox, A.D. et al. 1997 BWP Update 1:37-48
Kear, J 2005 Ducks, geese and swans Oxford University Press
[598.48 KEA]
See Also:
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