Snow Geese Galore
by Elizabeth Winter
Title
Snow Geese Galore
Artist
Elizabeth Winter
Medium
Photograph - Photography
Description
Life in the Arctic tundra where snow geese nest can be rough. And so, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, snow goose chicks are very well developed when they hatch - their eyes are open, their bodies are covered with down, and they can maintain their own body temperature within a few days. Within three weeks, these chicks might walk 50 miles with their parents to suitable brood-rearing areas.
The odd, dark-bodied goose with a white head you see mingling with the hundreds of all-white snows is called a blue goose. The blue coloring is caused by a single gene.
Very common in Midwestern flocks of snow geese, blue geese are comparatively rare here in the East. Some scientists say less than 1 percent of the greater snow geese that wing through Pennsylvania are blue-phase birds.
Snow geese can live very long lives, which is why they can be difficult for hunters to fool with decoys. The oldest snow goose on record, according to the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, was 27.5 years old. It was shot in Texas.
At the Middle Creek Wildlife Management Area in 1999, biologists caught with a net a snow goose bearing a neck collar and leg band indicating it was more than 17 years old. The collar and band were put on the bird 17 years earlier, and it was an adult at that time. Who knows how old it was then?
Uploaded
December 2nd, 2015
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Viewed 1,089 Times - Last Visitor from Romeo, MI on 04/22/2024 at 10:02 AM
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Comments (41)
Anne Gifford
This is just gorgeous, with the geese slightly obscuring the mountains beyond and the complementary grass colors setting off the foreground. like/f
Mary Lou Chmura
OMG, I can't even imagine, what a capture. This is an amazing composition all the way around. I love the warm light; beautifully done! l/f
Jack Zulli
I'm fortunate to live within an hours drive to the Horicon Marsh which is a main flyway of the Canadian Goose but have never seen a mass of geese as here! Well done Elizabeth:) vf
Skip Willits
These clouds of geese are just incredible to watch. Nicely done here and Elizabeth it would make a great jig saw puzzle...lol.
Hanne Lore Koehler
Another fantastic capture in this amazing series, Elizabeth! Beautiful colors and composition! L/F
Kathy Krause
Oh my gosh Elizabeth!! Awesome capture and spectacular sight I'll bet! It reminds me of the first time I went to Kearney to see the cranes. Fantastic capture Elizabeth!! L/F
Sandi OReilly
I am so amazed at this awesome capture, looks like it is raining birds!! Amazing shot, Elizabeth! F/L
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