Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Cape Barren Geese, Phillip Island

Cape Barren Geese Cereopsis novaehollandiae, Fishers Wetland, Phillip Island
I find Cape Barren Geese to be really interesting birds. Winter sees them in pairs at Phillip Island with evidence of nesting.

5 things I have learnt about Cape Barren Geese!

  1. They are able to drink brackish water enabling survival on small offshore islands
  2. There have responded well to various measures to ensure their survival after a phase of being considered endangered. They remain one of the rarest geese in the world but in their stronghold they are increasingly common.
  3. They may disperse to the mainland in summer but return to offshore islands (particularly in the Bass Strait) to breed
  4. There is a second population centred on the Recherche group of islands in Western Australia
  5. Their name harks from the Bass Strait island where European sightings were first documented - Cape Barren Island. Due to difficulties providing services to this remote location government policy in the 1950s saw Aboriginal inhabitants subject to the forceful removal of their children - now referred to as the stolen generations.


Cape Barren Geese rarely swim so this bird caught my eye. As it happens the water was so shallow it was actually wading!





This was taken as a setting-the-scene shot with the camera phone. Standing on a park bench to take the shot was enough for this female to decide she had had enough of me! Later on I saw that she was nesting (below). The nest is in the grasses at the water's edge just above her left wing in the shot above.
I have read that the male bird builds the nest and the female incubates the eggs.
Sharing with Wild Bird Wednesday



Bird on!

10 comments:

  1. What a fantastic bird, never come across this species before, and such great shots.
    Gordon.

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  2. Hi Pete Great shots of this Goose and wonderful to find a nest with one of them sitting on it. I have never heard or seen this goose before so it was good to read about the facts regarding it. Its head looks to small for its body, I wonder why that is? I especially love the 1st shot of them coming in the land. Margaret

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  3. Love those Cape Barren Geese Pete. We have them around the Murray Mouth on Hindmarch Island as well as at cape de Couedic on Kangaroo Island. They are so delightfully different from other geese.
    Thanks for your comment, I know the territories overlap or at least meet in the Flinders and personally I would go for the Twenty Eight Parrot as the Mallee one doesn't have those red spots. I really need to go back and listen to the voice to get half a step closer but since the experts cannot agree, who am I to agree or disagree.

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  4. What a great series!! Boom & Gary of the Vermilon River, Canada.

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  5. I have read about these geese but don't remember seeing photos of them before - yours are great - especially the in-flight ones.

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  6. Great series of shots, it is a pretty goose. The first shot is my favorite.

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  7. Thanks for the interesting facts. These birds are a complete mystery to me and very fascinating also! I would love to see them in the wild, but your photos bring them to life in the meantime.

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  8. These are such cool birds. Apparently they are related to a now extinct goose that used to live in New Zealand before European habitation. There are several at the Zoo where I teach.
    Elizabeth

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  9. These are such cool birds. Apparently they are related to a now extinct goose that used to live in New Zealand before European habitation. There are several at the Zoo where I teach.
    Elizabeth

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