Russian White-fronted Goose: A great local bird to catch up with, down the road from me and close rto where my old house is, these Russian whitefronts spent a few days on the banks of Lightshaw Flash SSSI.
These are great birds, who doesn't love a rare goose? These small geese feature a white forehead (the "white-front"), pinkish-orange bills (distinguishing them from the orange-billed Greenland subspecies), and, when mature, bold black barring on the belly.
They come to the UK to flee the freezing Arctic tundra of Russia to spend the winter in the warmer British climate. And they favour wetland and farmland habitats, with major wintering populations often located in Norfolk, the Thames Estuary, and southern England.
Unlike the Greenland white-fronted goose (
flavirostris), which winters mostly in the west and north, the Russian race is found in eastern and southern England. And this winter is shaping up to be a bit of an eruption yaer for white-fronted geese.
There over 30n birds feeding on the grass in the feild along with 60 pink-footed and dozens of Canada and greylag geese. A real mix.
