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Snow Goose

2007 Schools Wikipedia Selection. Related subjects: Birds

                   iSnow Goose

                             Conservation status

   Least Concern (LC)
            Scientific classification

   Kingdom: Animalia
   Phylum:  Chordata
   Class:   Aves
   Order:   Anseriformes
   Family:  Anatidae
   Genus:   Chen
   Species: C. caerulescens

                                Binomial name

   Chen caerulescens
   (Linnaeus, 1758)

                                 Subspecies

     * C. c. caerulescens ( Lesser Snow Goose)
     * C. c. atlanticus ( Greater Snow Goose)

                     Synonyms

   Anser caerulescens

   The Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens) is a North American species of
   goose. Its name derives from the typically white plumage.

   The American Ornithologists' Union places this species and the other
   two "white" geese in the genus Chen, while some other authorities place
   it in the more traditional "grey" goose genus Anser.
   Snow Geese wintering at the Bosque del Apache, New Mexico: note
   blue-phase bird at far upper left
   Enlarge
   Snow Geese wintering at the Bosque del Apache, New Mexico: note
   blue-phase bird at far upper left

   This goose breeds in northern Canada and the northeastern tip of
   Siberia, and winters much further south in the continent in the
   southern USA and beyond. These birds migrate in large flocks, often
   visiting traditional stopover habitats in spectacular numbers.

   The larger of the two subspecies, the Greater Snow Goose (C. c.
   atlanticus), nests to the north of eastern Canada. The smaller
   subspecies, the Lesser Snow Goose (C. c. caerulescens), commonly occurs
   in two plumage variants. White-phase birds are white except for black
   wing tips, but blue-phase geese have bluish-grey plumage replacing most
   of the white except on the head, neck and tail tip. White- and
   blue-phase birds do interbreed and the young may be of either type.
   Blue-phase birds are rare among the Greater Snow Geese.
   Snow Geese at the Bosque del Apache, New Mexico: note two blue-phase
   birds in center
   Enlarge
   Snow Geese at the Bosque del Apache, New Mexico: note two blue-phase
   birds in centre

   This species is a rare vagrant to Europe, but a frequent escape from
   collections and an occasional feral breeder.

   The nest is usually located in a slightly elevated location on the
   ground, built with plant material and lined with down.

   These birds mainly eat plant material found in shallow water or on
   land. Outside of the nesting season, they usually feed in flocks. In
   winter, these birds feed on left-over grain in fields.

   The population of Greater Snow Geese was in decline at the beginning of
   the 20th century, but has now recovered to sustainable levels.

   Snow Geese in North America have increased to the point where the
   tundra breeding areas in the Arctic and the saltmarsh wintering grounds
   are both becoming severely degraded, and this affects other species
   using the same habitat. Extending hunting of this wary species has made
   no significant impact on numbers. On the other hand, the Siberian
   population is declining due to predation by Arctic Foxes and habitat
   disturbance by reindeer.

   Snow Geese are rare visitors to the British Isles, where they are seen
   regularly among flocks of Barnacle, Brent and Greenland White-fronted
   geese. There is also a feral population in Scotland.
   Lesser Snow Goose (white phase)
   Enlarge
   Lesser Snow Goose (white phase)
   Retrieved from " http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Snow_Goose"
   This reference article is mainly selected from the English Wikipedia
   with only minor checks and changes (see www.wikipedia.org for details
   of authors and sources) and is available under the GNU Free
   Documentation License. See also our Disclaimer.
