Greylag Goose (Anser anser)

2/9/02 Los Angeles County Arboretum, Arcadia, CA 

6/22/02 Prado Regional Park, Chino Hills, San Bernardino County, CA 

7/25/04 Legg Lake, Whittier Narrows Recreation Area, Los Angeles County, CA

LIFE LIST NOTES:

COMMON NAME: Domestic Greylag Goose

SPECIES: Anser anser

FAMILY: Anatidae (Ducks & Geese)

LIFE LIST DATE: 2/9/2002

LOCATION: Los Angeles County Arboretum, Arcadia, CA

From http://www.birds.cornell.edu/crows/domgeese.htm :

The Greylag Goose, a native of northern and central Eurasia, has been domesticated and raised for meat for over 1,000 years. It can be white, completely gray (like the wild form), or somewhere in-between.  Dozens of domestic breeds exist, with lots of variation in size and coloring.  (In some the coloring is sex-linked, with females having gray patches and the males always white!). Their necks are thick, their bodies are very bulky with extreme bellies on land and a big butt on the water. Their bills tend to be thickened at the base behind the nostrils. Compare this face with a real Greater White-fronted Goose and you'll see a quite different profile. Domestic geese are bred to be big and provide a lot of meat, hence they are very bulky.