Ruddy-headed Goose
Chloephaga rubidiceps
A rare and endangered goose on the South American mainland, but fairly common in the Falkland Islands. This subtly attractive austral goose is easily passed off as a female of the slightly larger Upland Goose. Relative to female Upland, Ruddy-headed (in which sexes look alike) has a shorter ruddy neck (which can be fairly dull and pale, especially in the Falklands) with narrow white eye crescents and a pale forehead; body is cleaner and paler gray with dark rusty belly and vent; legs are deeper orange. In flight, bold wing pattern is like female Upland. Found in pairs or small groups, readily associating with Upland Geese.
Identification
The ruddy-headed goose is 45 to 52.5 cm (18 to 21 in) long. Males weigh 1.65 to 2.02 kg (3.6 to 4.5 lb) and females 1.20 to 1.50 kg (2.6 to 3.3 lb). Adults have the same plumage. Their heads and necks are red-brown, their back, breast, and flanks gray and buff with brown barring, their belly cinnamon, and their tail black. Their wing's upperside is gray and the underside gray, black, and white. Their bill is black and the legs and feet orange with black markings. Juveniles are similar to adults but duller overall.
Taxonomy
The ruddy-headed goose is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Chloephaga rubidiceps
- Authority
- Sclater, PL, 1861
- Order
- Anseriformes
- Family
- Anatidae
- Genus
- Chloephaga
Range and habitat
The ruddy-headed goose is found in the eastern Chilean and Argentinian parts of Tierra del Fuego and north from there to Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is also found on the Falkland Islands. It inhabits open landscapes such as meadows, Pampas wetlands, the borders of ponds, and coastal grasslands.
- Migration
- Complete migrants
Behavior
Ruddy-headed geese are year-round residents of the Falkland Islands, though they make local movements there. The species nests in Tierra del Fuego and far southern mainland Argentina and for the winter migrates north from there as far as Argentina's Buenos Aires Province.<p>The ruddy-headed goose is almost entirely vegetarian and feeds mostly on the ground rather than in water. On the breeding grounds its diet is small berries and the roots, leaves, stems, and seeds of grasses and sedges. During winter it feeds on young wheat and in harvested fields of maize, sunflower, and sorghum.<p>The ruddy-headed goose's breeding season begins as early as September on the Falkland Islands and in mid-October on the mainland. It nests singly or in small loose groups. Nests are placed in long grass or amid boulders and are lined with down. The clutch size is three to eight eggs. Males guard females during the incubation period of about 30 days. The time to fledging is not known.<p>Male and female ruddy-headed geese have different vocalizations: Males make a "short, whistled 'seep'" and females a "short rasping quack".
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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