Momma's Little Gooslings
by Elizabeth Winter
Title
Momma's Little Gooslings
Artist
Elizabeth Winter
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
The female lays her eggs as soon as there is open water for mating and snow-free nest sites.
The female typically lays a clutch of 5 to 7 white eggs (though the number can range anywhere from 2 to 12) while the male guards the nesting area. Laying the eggs is not a simple task. Each egg takes a little over a day to lay.
I can tell you from personal experience that if you accidentally wander into a nesting male's territory while looking for a good spot to lie your picnic blanket down, he'll come after you hissing with wings spread -- they look a lot bigger and move a fair bit faster when they're upset about something.
The eggs typically take about a month to incubate. The process is faster the farther north the geese nest since the summers are shorter.
The baby geese peck at their shells with the 'egg tooth' found at the end of their bill. It takes 1 to 2 days for them to free themselves from the egg.
The newly hatched babies (called 'goslings') are able to swim immediately. The male and female goose both accompany the babies during their swims.
Goslings can dive and swim for 30-40 feet underwater and they eat almost continuously to attain growth for the first migration flight.
After the babies (called 'goslings') have hatched, the family moves away from the nesting site on foot toward more favorable feeding areas. Five weeks after the goslings hatch, the females begin moulting (the males begin right after mating). During this time, the adults are unable to fly. The adults regrow their flight feathers and are ready to fly at about the same time as the goslings are able to learn - at nine weeks old.
Uploaded
April 30th, 2014
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Viewed 1,364 Times - Last Visitor from Fairfield, CT on 04/25/2024 at 10:12 AM
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Comments (60)
Hanne Lore Koehler
Fantastic capture of these sweet little goslings, Elizabeth!!! Wonderful details and color! L/F
Christiane Schulze
A lovely family portrait Elizabeth. They looking very cute and the reflection is a great addition :-) (F/L)
Jake Danishevsky
Wow. Love the shot and the way you turned this one into the art piece. Fantastic. :) :)