Subject: [Tweeters] Anser X Canada
Date: Apr 15 21:05:07 2005
From: pslott - VariedThrush at comcast.net


White around base of beak. Beak black on tip, then streaked and mottled
with pink toward the base. Light cheek up to eyes with dark patches
over auriculars. Light eye ring. Dark crown extending down back of
neck. Front of neck mottled. Body like Sibley's "Juvenile Tundra" GWFG
or his Canada X. Legs pale orange. With large Canada geese grazing in
a light rain 30'-40' away to the west of the boardwalk half-way to
Nisqually's Twin Barn.

Steve,

The individual I saw 4-12-05 in Nisqually is described above. I posted
Tweeters about the bird on 4-13. It was nearly as large as the Canadas
whose company it kept, but was paler overall and looked most like the
picture of the "Possible" WFGO X Canada (with the odd white feathers
around the eye) taken in Finland 9/8/03 on your message's site. Perhaps
a little paler, though. I confess that I didn't take the time to
determine an ID of the Canada subspecies but thought of them as
Commons. They seemed big and seemed to have the broad chinstrap. I
tried at first to ID the bird as some Bean Goose hybrid but was defeated
by the pale, Canada-like cheeks. Ann Marie Wood had her National Geo.
field guide that I referenced to decide it was WFGO X Canada. At home,
my Sibley showed the closest likeness I'd seen in his WFGO X Canada
picture. He gives no size for the hybrid. It didn't occur to me to
check back in Domestic Waterfowl, but the Greylag could well be the
Anser in this individual.

I apologize if I misled anyone with my post. Obviously, I'm no expert!
Phil, the individual I saw seemed definitely paler than the Canadas next
to it. Burt, your response 4-13 was very helpful. Thank you! And
thanks, Steve, for the very helpful pictures. I'd love to read further
posts on this individual, assuming there is just one hybrid in
Nisqually. Sorry we had no camera.

Patricia Lott
Seattle, WA

**********************
Greetings

Seems to be a rash of these things. All photos sent to me (none from
Nisqually) have been of Graylag (actually, descendents thereof) and Canada.

One way to separate these is that the domestic hybrid is a big bird.
Typically they breed with our resident moffitti geese, so that they are
at least as large as such, and they are stout.

WFGeese don't breed where moffitti does. They breed where small and
intermediate Cackling/Canadas do (in the west, minima, taverneri, and
parvipes). So, a WFGO x Canada or Cackling should be WFGO in size or
smaller and no more robust in appearance than a WFGO.

Harry Lehto's excellent website (
http://users.utu.fi/hlehto/photo/hybrid/ ) has pictures of several
Graylag x Canada Goose plus at least one WFGO x Canada (don't know which
race; may have been in captivity and thus the Canada may have been a
larger race).

Cheers
Steven Mlodinow
Everett WA