British Population Size:
Summer:
3200 wild pairs
in 1997
Winter:
225 thousand individuals
in 2004-09
 
First Record:
Recorded in Anglo-Saxon times
[Fossil evidence from
Middle Pleistocene, c. 500,000 yr ago]
Conservation Status:
AMBER
because
Localised Non-breeding Population,
Important Non-breeding Population
Previous Assessments:
2002-2007
AMBER
1996-2001
AMBER
Races of Concern:
anser AMBER (Rare or Localised)
Habitat Occupancy (in the Breeding Season):
Most frequent in:
Reedbed
Relative Frequency in Each Habitat:
Migration routes:
Map of foreign ringing recoveries
and summary map from Time to Fly (in pop-up windows)
European Population Size:
Summer:
100 to 145 thousand pairs
Population Assesment from Birds in Europe
Distribution in Europe mapped by the EBCC Atlas
Listed on the Appendices/Schedules of:
WCA(I,II), WBD(II*,III*), Bern(III), Bonn(II), AEWA
Breeding and Survival
Egg Size:
86 x 58 mm
Egg Weight:
160.0 g (of which 13 % is shell)
Number of Nest Records:
22
Clutch Size:
5 - 7 eggs
Incubation:
27- 28 days
by the:
Female
Fledging:
50 - 60days
as:
Precocial, downy
First Clutches Laid:
Unavailable
Number of Broods:
1
See trends in Breeding Productivity
Number Ringed:
Annual Totals
Adult Survival:
0.830
Juvenile Survival:
0.560 (to age 3 )
Age at First Breeding:
3
years
Typical Lifespan:
8
years
Maximum Recorded Age:
18 years 8 months 2 days (set in 1984)
Read a summary of Ringing Recoveries
Biometrics
Ring Size:
L*
Wing Length
Adult:
447.9 ± 17.6
Range
325.0 - 540.0 mm, (N = 1203)
Juvenile:
432.8 ± 14.6
Range
381.0 - 477.0 mm, (N = 631)
Male:
458.6 ± 13.7
Range
348.0 - 540.0 mm, (N = 596)
Female:
435.0 ± 13.4
Range
325.0 - 478.0 mm, (N = 564)
Weight
Adult:
3.36 ± 0.35
Range
2.20 - 4.80 kg , (N =1149)
Juvenile:
2908.8 ± 331.6
Range
1800.0 - 4000.0 . , (N =598)
Male:
3.52 ± 0.31
Range
4.00 - 4800 kg , (N =568)
Female:
3.19 ± 0.31
Range
2.70 - 3.80 kg , (N =539)
Seasonal:
Summer 3.30 ± 0.41 (N = 167)  
Autumn 3.26 ± 0.32 (N = 535)
Winter 3.36 ± 0.38 (N = 479)  
Source:
British Trust for Ornithology (2005) Ringing Scheme data
Other Names
Gaelic:
Gèadh-glas
Welsh:
Gwydd Wylla
Danish:
Grågås
Dutch:
Grauwe gans
Finnish:
Merihanhi
French:
Oie cendrée
German:
Graugans
Hungarian:
Nyári lúd
Icelandic:
Grágæs
Irish:
Gé Ghlas
Italian:
Oca selvatica
Norwegian:
Grågås
Polish:
Gegawa (ges gegawa)
Portuguese:
Ganso-comum
Spanish:
Ansar común
Swedish:
Grågås
Collective Noun: Gaggle
For More Information...
Books and Monographs:
Lorenz, K. 1979 The year of the greylag goose Eyre Methuen, London
[598.483 LOR]
Kempe-Persson, H. 2002 BWP Update 4:181-216
Lorenz, K. 1988 Here am I, where are you: the behavior of the greylag Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, New York
[591.7 LOR]
See Also:
Find scientific papers on Google Scholar
or Scirus by clicking the icon
Wikipedia entry
BirdLife species page
Recent sightings and information from BirdGuides
Read State of the Nations Birds by Chris Mead