Hi Steve -

If I saw this bird at Nisqually, Ridgefield, or in the Willamette Valley, I wouldn't think twice about considering it a Taverner's Cackling Goose. It is obviously a Cackling Goose, based on its size and the shape of the bill.

The Taverner’s goose is the largest of the several Cackling Goose subspecies in our area, and has the pale breast feathering that separates it from the smaller and darker-breasted B.h. minima “Cacklers”. The Taverner’s also have a lower-pitched ‘bark’ or ‘yelp’ than the minimas.

That said, I doubt that I would be able to tell a wayward “Richardson’s” Cackling Goose from the abundant Taverners, as both subspecies are relatively longer-necked and paler than the minimas. I have hunted the Richardson’s in the Prairie Provinces, and was struck by how similar they are to the Tavs.

The Aleutian Cackling Goose is also long-necked and more pale-breasted. However, all (most?) of the known Aleutians that I’ve seen show the white ring at the base of the black neck ‘stocking’. Keep in mind that all of the Cackling Goose subspecies *can* have the white ring, with about 5-15% of any group of Taverners (or minima Cacklers) showing that characteristic. The Sibley’s Guide does a disservice to folks attempting to separated the several subspecies, by showing only the Aleutian Cackling Goose with a white ring, and not mentioning that birds from the other races can have one.

The Taverner’s can also be confused with the B.c. parvipes “Lesser” Canada Goose, where you get both forms in the Moses Lake area. Taverners are not much smaller than the Lessers, but the bill shape should help in the ID. I’ve not been confidant that I’ve seen Lessers at Nisqually, although some come through the Willamette Valley.

A few resources that may be helpful are the Washington and Oregon Departments of Fish & Wildlifes’ Goose Identification program. Waterfowl hunters are required to learn the several species/subspecies’ characteristics to hunt white-cheeked geese on the Coast, in southwest Washington, and northwest Oregon; generally to reduce mortality on the Dusky Canada Goose. You can find their materials at https://wdfw.wa.gov/hunting/requirements/goose-identification-testing and https://myodfw.com/articles/hunting-northwest-goose-permit-zone

Hope this helps,

Jon. Anderson

OlyWA

festuca at comcast dot net