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WetlandPlatform nestHuge · 3.3 kg
What the Greylag Goose sounds like
ID tip
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). It is 74 to 91 centimetres (29 to 36 in) long with a wing length of 41.2 to 48 centimetres (16+1⁄4 to 19 in). It has a tail 6.2 to 6.9 centimetres (2+7⁄16 to 2+11⁄16 in), a bill of 6.4 to 6.9 centimetres (2+1⁄2 to 2+11⁄16 in) long, and a tarsus of 7.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
When to see the Greylag Goose
One bar for each month, and every month is filled: this bird is recorded here in all twelve. The wide bar is April, the month with the most records.
Where to see the Greylag Goose
The map shades 101 countries with regular records, and 6 more in a lighter tone where the bird turns up only as a stray. Everything unshaded has no records. Countries are listed below the map.
Recorded as a rare visitor in Peru, Uganda, Bolivia, Kosovo, St. Martin, Syria.
About the Greylag Goose
The greylag goose is a species of large goose in the waterfowl family Anatidae and the type species of the genus Anser. It has mottled and barred grey and white plumage and an orange beak and pink legs. A large bird, it measures between 74 and 91 centimetres in length, with an average weight of 3.3 kilograms. Its distribution is widespread, with birds from the north of its range in Europe and Asia often migrating southwards to spend the winter in warmer places, although many populations are resident, even in the north. It is the ancestor of most breeds of domestic goose, having been domesticated at least as early as 1360 BCE.
Text adapted from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Easily confused with
Snow GooseAnser caerulescensThe snow goose has two color plumage morphs, white (snow) or gray/blue (blue), thus the common description as "snows" and "blues".
Greater White-fronted GooseAnser albifronsGreater 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 lb 4 oz – 7 lb 5 oz).
Pink-footed GooseAnser brachyrhynchusIt is a medium-sized goose, 60–75 cm (24–30 in) long, the wingspan 135–170 cm (53–67 in), and weighing 1.8–3.4 kg (4.0–7.5 lb).
Side by side: Greylag Goose vs Hooded Merganser · Greylag Goose vs Snow Goose · Greater White-fronted Goose vs Greylag Goose · Greylag Goose vs Pink-footed Goose
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