Snow Goose







Snow Goose Locator Map

Key:
pink = breeding range
green = winter habitat

Description

25-31" (64-79 cm)
Wingspan 35 inches
The Snow Goose has the unusual trait of appearing in two color phases, "blue" and "snow." In the Blue phase, the head and upper neck are pure white, while the rest of the body is a grayish-brown to black. Of course, in the snow phase they are completely white, except for their black wing tips. This color change camouglages these ground-nesting birds in both snow and grassy wetlands.

Voice

A noisy high-pitched, barking bow-wow! or howk-howk! Can be heard more than a mile away.

Habitat

Breeds on the tundra and winters in salt marshes and marshy coastal bays; less commonly in freshwater marshes and adjacent grainfields. Snow Geese prefer marshes containing tall grasses and sedges that provide both food and cover.

Nesting

4-8 white eggs in a nest sparsely lined with down on the tundra. Nests in colonies in the summer.

Range

Breeds in Arctic regions of North America and extreme eastern Siberia. Winters in wetlands of the United States. Some populations follow a central flyway south on their way to Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge. Here, the Snow Geese typically enjoy a healthy winter, as refuge personnel manage the habitat to ensure migrating birds have access to food and shelter. At the first signs of spring, Snow Geese again take to the skies in huge numbers, returning north to nest.