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Had an exciting birding interlude during a Thanksgiving supper with my family
last night. From Cochrane Point in Enfield, I saw a trio of geese (so I thought)
fly past, about 150m out over the water. The two leading birds were clearly
Canada Geese, but the third was pure white! The wingtips were obviously white,
excluding Snow Goose. My impression was that the white bird had the same shape
as the Canadas, with the same fairly slim build. I think that excludes a
domestic goose.
I borrowed a pair of binoculars (of course mine and the camera were at home!)
and ran down to the edge of the lake. The birds landed near the opposite shore,
now about 400m away. The old binoculars were not a lot of help, but I was able
to observe the trio paddling about in the water. My impression was of a white
Canada goose, with perhaps a slightly darker neck than the rest of its body. A
dog began barking near the birds, and all three took off, the white one
trailing. The white one appeared slightly larger than the other two, but it was
behind the others which I know could make it look larger. There were some
distinct Canada Goose honks as they flew, and a couple of other melodic sounds
that I struggle to remember exactly, but they didn't sound un-gooselike. They
flew north past Monta Vista and out of sight.
I came away with the impression I'd seen a white Canada Goose, perhaps slightly
larger than usual. I didn't think it was a swan at the time, since I didn't see
a really long neck or huge size. But once I got home and looked at my field
guides, I realized I'd been thinking all swans looked like Mute or Trumpeter
Swans, but the Tundra Swan is not much bigger than a goose and has fairly
gooselike proportions.
I'm left with Tundra Swan vs white Canada Goose. I know leucism or albinism can
be seen in any species, and a quick Google search pulls up a few images of white
Canadas, but they seem to be fairly rare. And this bird was distinctly white,
not whitish but white. I don't know whether a Tundra or a white Canada would be
more likely. Also, would a swan flock with geese?
Any thoughts would be appreciated. Hopefully it will make another appearance and
be identified conclusively.
Kathleen MacAulay
Milford Station
--0-162002932-1286889068=:45941
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<html><head><style type="text/css"><!-- DIV {margin:0px;} --></style></head><body><div style="font-family:verdana,helvetica,sans-serif;font-size:10pt">Had an exciting birding interlude during a Thanksgiving supper with my family last night. From Cochrane Point in Enfield, I saw a trio of geese (so I thought) fly past, about 150m out over the water. The two leading birds were clearly Canada Geese, but the third was pure white! The wingtips were obviously white, excluding Snow Goose. My impression was that the white bird had the same shape as the Canadas, with the same fairly slim build. I think that excludes a domestic goose.<br><div style="font-family: verdana,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><div style="font-family: times new roman,new york,times,serif; font-size: 12pt;"><div style="font-family: verdana,helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt;"><br>I borrowed a pair of binoculars (of course mine and the camera were at home!) and ran down to the
edge of the lake. The birds landed near the opposite shore, now about 400m away. The old binoculars were not a lot of help, but I was able to observe the trio paddling about in the water. My impression was of a white Canada goose,
with perhaps a slightly darker neck than the rest of its body. A dog began barking near the birds, and all three took off, the white one trailing. The white one appeared slightly larger than the other two, but it was behind the others which I know could make it look larger. There were some distinct Canada Goose honks as they flew, and a couple of other melodic sounds that I struggle to remember exactly, but they didn't sound un-gooselike. They flew north past Monta Vista and out of sight.<br><br>I came away with the impression I'd seen a white Canada Goose, perhaps slightly larger than usual. I didn't think it was a swan at the time, since I didn't see a really long neck or huge size. But once I got home and looked at my field guides, I realized I'd been thinking all swans looked like Mute or Trumpeter Swans, but the Tundra Swan is not much bigger than a goose and has fairly gooselike proportions.<br><br>I'm left with Tundra Swan vs white Canada Goose.
I know leucism or albinism can be seen in any species, and a quick Google search pulls up a few images of white Canadas, but they seem to be fairly rare. And this bird was distinctly white, not whitish but <span style="text-decoration: underline;">white</span>. I don't know whether a Tundra or a white Canada would be more likely. Also, would a swan flock with geese? <br><br>Any thoughts would be appreciated. Hopefully it will make another appearance and be identified conclusively.<br><br>Kathleen MacAulay<br>Milford Station<br></div><br></div></div>
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