Phil Davis wrote:

" One last question ... are all the races of Canada Geese that are "likely"
to split [this won't start a debate, will it???] represented in Cascadia at
this time of the year (a week from now). "

All of the seven West Coast races pass through or winter in 'Cascadia'. Early October is just the beginning of the migration, so numbers will be low when you hit this coast a week from now.

If I remember correctly, Ralph Lettenmaier - who's a retired Asst. Manager for the Baskett Slough NWR near Dallas/Rickreall, Oregon - had the first Dusky Canadas arriving at Morgan Lake there on 28 September each year, with good numbers showing up in mid-late October. The first Taverners usually showed up by mid to late October. Cacklers would be flying overhead this time of year, but wintering birds didn't seem to arrive in nubmers until a bit after the duskys, as well. At Ankeny NWR, duskys didn't show up much until the last week of October/first week of November, and I don't recall what the arrival dates are for Sauvies' Island (OBOL-types, do you have any info?).

The Dusky (B.c. occidentalis), Taverner's (B.c. taverneri), Cackling (B.c. minima) and Western/Great Basin (B.c. moffitti) subspecies were the four main subspecies that I observed in the Willamette Valley of Oregon when working for the Wm Finley/Ridgefield NWR complexes back in the 70s and 80s.

The Dusky has been a subspecies of concern following the 1964 Alaska earthquake, which raised its nesting area in the Copper River delta 6 feet in the air, causing major changes in vegetation and susceptibility to predation. The population declined due to bear and coyote predation, resulting in the establishment of a number of National Wildlife Refuge areas (Willamette Valley, Ridgefield), and severe limits were placed on goose hunting in SW Washington and W Oregon. Their population went from around 20,000 in the late 60s down to about 7,500 in the mid-80s and then back up a bit.

Taverner's Canadas were one of the groups usually lumped by hunters and goose managers under the epithet of "Lessers", and weren't given too much attention until the managers at Ridgefield and Finley Refuges noticed in the mid 1970s that all of the protection (refuges), habitat modification, and hunting restrictions in place to protect the Duskies were causing the Tavs to "shortstop". Apparently, the Tavs - which likely used to mix in with the 100s of thousands of Cacklers, 'Honkers' and other "Lessers" in the California flocks - were staying the winter on the Columbia and Willamette refuge areas. To the tune of 100,000 birds or so. Imagine the reaction from the local farmers, whose winter wheat and grass seed crops were the main diet of these birds, when the regional goose population quintupled!

The Cacklers started overwintering in the region in the early 80s, presumably due to the same 'shortstopping' phenomenon. Only a portion of this population stayed north, with the bulk still going down to California. But, there was a period when the overall Cackling Canada population took a sharp dip, and hunting of this supspecies was prohibited. Again, imagine the poor hunters, who were asked to hunt the 4-6 pound, light-breasted Taverners (because of the large numbers causing crop damages), but required to *not* shoot the 3-4 pound Cacklers or the 6-8 pound Duskies... tsk, tsk.

Mix in the Western/Great Basin subspecies 8-10 pound, light-breasted 'honkers', and you might guess at the mix of birds - making for some fun if you're trying to ID the subspecies (required for hunters and de rigeur for a few crazy birders). This group is pretty much resident, nesting on sand bars in the river, in farm ponds, city park ponds, etc., all over the area. This subspecies is also causing somewhat of a problem as crop depredators, as well as a problem as 'urban' geese - fouling lawns and water in city parks, chasing kids and dogs, etc., etc.

I have seen some small (4-6 pound, light-breasted) birds mixed with the Taverner flocks that were obviously *not* the same birds as the Tavs. A very few were measured and identified at the waterfowl hunter check-stations in the mid-Willamette Valley as Lesser Canadas (B.c. parvipes). To me, lessers seem a lot lighter-gray on the breast than do the Taverners' subspecies. It is my understanding that the majority of the parvipes supspecies tend to migrate east of the Cascade crest.

A few that I thought I never could identify *appeared* 'long-legged and long-necked', had slightly more 'creamy' gray breast coloration, and stayed somewhat apart from the Taverner flocks. Finally, I was lucky enough to find a couple that had been banded with the usual FWS metal band on one leg, and a plastic alpha-numeric band on the other leg. These were the Aleutian Canada geese (B.c. leucopareia), that nest in the Aleutians and generally winter in California.

In 8 years of observing and hunter check-station work, I do not recall seeing what *I* could identify as a Vancouver's Canada (B.c. fulva) in the Willamette Valley/Lower Columbia area. Indeed, the museum skins I've seen sure look like 'big Duskies', and measurements in the hand would probably be needed to truly differentiate them (?). However, I have several times observed medium-to-large-bodied, dark-breasted Canada geese at the mouth of the Samish River, in Skagit County, Washington, that I would surmise could be B.c. fulva. I'd sure like to hear from our B.C. Tweets as to where to find a 'good' B.c. fulva.

" (Sorry, I don't have research at my finger tips to be more specific on the subspecies. Any particular places recommended for finding them?"

Best places for looking at the greater mix of Canadas would be at Ridgefield NWR, down in Clark County about 15 miles north of Vancouver, USA; Sauvie's Island (an Oregon State Wildlife Management Area), just west of downtown Portland on US Hwy 30, and the three Willamette Valley National Wildlife Refuges (Ankeny, Baskett Slough and Wm L Finley NWRs) in the Corvallis-Salem area.

>From what I've seen in most of the Puget Trough, far and away, the bulk of Canada geese are the Western/Great Basins - and these can be found at about every city park with a large lake (Green Lake and Lake Washington in Seattle, Capitol Lake in Olympia, etc). These birds will look a lot like your eastern B.c. canadensis, or B.c. interior from the Wisconsin/Illinois flocks, but tend to be a bit larger.

I've often seen Duskys and Taverners in pastures near Ocosta, Washington - along State Hwy 105 en route to Westport on Grays Harbor. A very few times, I have seen Cacklers at Nisqually NWR east of Olympia.

With some looking, you might see the snow geese and Greater White-fronts passing by, en route to the Sacramento Valley (with a major stop-over in the Klamath Basin). Some of these birds will winter on the lower Columbia/Willamette Valley, but the only large group of Snow Geese to be expected is (are?) the Wrangell Island (Russia) breeders that winter at the mouth of the Fraser (Reifel Refuge) and Skagit/Stillaguamish River. Are they in at Reifel yet, Michael Price?

Hope this helps. Phil, enjoy your visit out here - and dress appropriately. Saturday, we had 1-1/4 inches of rain, and today there was hardly a cloud in the sky. And please, let us know what you see!

Jon. Anderson
Olympia, Washington
festuca at olywa.net