Taiga Bean-Goose
Anser fabalis
Rather large, dark gray-brown goose with variable orange patch on bill (often extensively orange, unlike typical Tundra Bean Goose) and orange legs. In flight lacks contrasting pale forewing areas of Pink-footed Goose and Graylag Goose. Not always safely told in the field from Tundra Bean-Goose, but Taiga averages a longer, more sloping bill, versus the shorter and thicker bill of Tundra. Breeds in taiga and winters in farmland and wetlands, where it associates readily with other geese.
Identification
The length ranges from 68 to 90 cm (27–35 in), wingspan from 140 to 174 cm (55–69 in) and weight from 1.7–4 kg (3.7–8.8 lb). In the nominate subspecies, males average 3.2 kg (7.1 lb) and females average 2.84 kg (6.3 lb). The bill is black at the base and tip, with an orange band across the middle; the legs and feet are also bright orange.<p>The upper wing-coverts are dark brown, as in the white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons) and the lesser white-fronted goose (A. erythropus), but differing from these in having narrow white fringes to the feathers.<p>The voice is a loud honking, higher pitched in the smaller subspecies.<p>The closely related pink-footed goose (A. brachyrhynchus) has the bill short, bright pink in the middle, and the feet also pink, the upper wing-coverts being nearly of the same bluish-grey as in the greylag goose. In size and bill structure, it is very similar to Anser fabalis rossicus, and in the past was often treated as a sixth subspecies of bean goose.
Taxonomy
The English and scientific names of the bean goose come from its habit in the past of grazing in bean field stubbles in winter. Anser is the Latin for "goose", and fabalis is derived from the Latin faba, a broad bean.<p>There are three subspecies, with complex variation in body size and bill size and pattern; generally, size increases from north to south and from west to east.
- Scientific name
- Anser fabalis
- Authority
- (Latham, 1787)
- Order
- Anseriformes
- Family
- Anatidae
- Genus
- Anser
Range and habitat
The taiga bean goose is a rare winter visitor to Britain. There are two regular wintering flocks of taiga bean goose, in the Yare Valley, Norfolk and the Avon Valley, Scotland. A formerly regular flock in Dumfries and Galloway no longer occurs there.<p>The taiga bean geese Anser fabalis fabalis wintering in Europe are considered to migrate across three different flyways: Western, Central and Eastern; which has been confirmed by stable isotope analysis of their flight feathers.
- Breeding range
- PAL : n
- Non-breeding range
- se China and c Europe
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Bird Calls
Other Birds
White-striped Warbler
Myiothlypis leucophrys
Hyperactive warbler that nervously and continually flicks its tail in the understory of forests near water. Note the broad white eyebrow fringed with gray and the narrow dark mask. It has a gray shawl, a white face, and is mostly olive-green above and gray below. The song is a loud melodic series of tinkling notes.
Lizard Buzzard
Kaupifalco monogrammicus
A small, chunky, grayish hawk with a distinctive pale throat spliced by a vertical black throat stripe; has one or two (rarely) broad white bars across the black tail. Occurs in singles or pairs in savanna and is often seen perched in the open, watching for insects, lizards, snakes, and other small vertebrates. Calls a loud shrill “peeee-eeeuuu” or repeated “whuuua-whuuua-whuuaa”. It is shorter-legged and has a more powerful build than most sparrowhawks. Most similar to Gabar Goshawk, both having a broad white rump band in flight, but Lizard Buzzard is distinguished by its distinctive throat pattern, pale tail bands, and pale tail tips.
Zigzag Heron
Zebrilus undulatus
Small, dark, rarely seen heron of forest. Plumage is entirely gray-brown with fine black vermiculations; young birds sport warmer tones. Occurs at low density in swampy forest, especially along densely vegetated riverbanks and in areas with much standing water. Stays close to cover and forages deliberately, walking slowly on the ground or ambushing prey from low perches, flicking tail continuously. May freeze or fly off awkwardly when startled. Heard more often than seen; song is a muffled hoot, repeated at long intervals, usually given before dawn or at dusk. Combination of small size, dark plumage and forest habitat should clinch identification.
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