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Cackling Geese in the East

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Cackling Geese in the East Cackling Geese in the East Since 2004, when Cackling Geese were formally split from Canada Geese, birders have been keeping an eye out for small-bodied and short-billed geese, termed Cackling Geese, mixed in with “typical” large-bodied, wedge-headed Canada Geese. This ID challenge is very much like a birders version of “Where’s Waldo?”An excellent overview of this split was provided by OMNR waterfowl expert, Ken Abraham, in the winter of 2005. Here’s the link: http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/articles.cacklinggoose. I will attempt to make this discussion as clear, digestible, and casual as possible, but if anything is unclear, please email me at [email protected] and I would be happy to go over material. Below I provide an identification overview of “Richardson’s” (hutchinsii) Cackling Geese, Myth Busting, and Quiz photos. ______________________________________________________________________________ “Richardson’s” (hutchinsii) Cackling Geese Figure 1: Ontario’s Cackling Geese: an example of five “classic” hutchinsii Cackling Geese. Note the diminutive size overall; steep forehead; proportionally small head with “blocky” shape in most postures; peaked rear to crown; relatively thick and short bill (variable and may sometimes show a pronounced droop nearest the tip; lending to a Roman’s Nose look); show short and stubby neck (esp. in relaxed posture); small, compact body; pale emarginations often seen but not always; breast averages paler than Canada Geese but this is not the case on some birds, esp. juveniles. Andrew Haydon Park — 1 October 2013. Figure 2: More prototypical hutchinsii Cackling Geese, with three interior Canada Geese at back. Once small-bodied white-cheeked geese are located in a flock of geese, Cackling Goose ID begins from the head down. A primary identifier is the head and bill morphology; you can ID even the larger male hutchinsii with confidence once you dial the head and bill morphology in to your search image. Andrew Haydon Park — 1 October 2013. © Jon Ruddy 2016 Page 1 Figure 3: A flock of 25 hutchinsii Cackling Geese. Note how they “bundle” up and form a sub- flock within a flock; this is often the case and often by looking for sub-groups, one can get on geese of special interest within a flock of Canada’s. Almonte Sewage Lagoons — 10 October 2014. __________________________________________________________________________ Myth-busting Cacklers Myth: if it’s not approaching Mallard-size, it’s not a Cackling Most hutchinsii are well above Mallard-sized and some approach (and even overlap) small female interior Canada Geese in weight (Jim Leafloor, pers. comm. October 2014). Mallard-like size and a very stubby bill is far more typical of westerner, minima, than nominate hutchinsii (Steve Mlodinow, pers. comm. September 2015). Applying biogeographical concepts, i.e. Bergmann’s Rule: the southern cohorts average more robust and larger-bodied than do the northern ones. Perhaps then the cacklers that appear to be near-Mallard-sized originate from more northerly cohorts. Males are larger than females and, in general, hutchinsii vary tremendously in mass (Mowbray 2002). For example, a large male Richardson’s from the southern portion of the breeding range compared to a female from the Baffin Islands…..quite the difference, structural and size- wise, between the two. Mowbray et al. (2002) give a range in the mean weight of males from north to the south of 1.92–2.38 kg and for females 1.65–2.10 kg. Consider a large male (2.38 kg) compared to a small female (1.65 kg). Figure 4: An example of variation in size and structure in eastern hutchinsii Cackling Geese. I find that I observe the large, “blocky” head and “Roman’s Nose” bill on presumed males more than I do with petite, presumed females. I noted these two as a pair: they swam together for several hours and the larger bird was noticeably more alert and assertive. Almonte Sewage Lagoons — 10 October 2014. © Jon Ruddy 2016 Page 2 Figure 5: A juvenile interior Canada Goose with a male Mallard. This photo provides an example of the smaller size of these more northern Canada Geese.To note, juveniles are, on average, 90% the size of adults (Ken Abraham, pers. comm. October 2013) so this particular specimen is on the small end of the spectrum for a typical interior Canada. Andrew Haydon Park — 1 October 2013. Figure 6: A hutchinsii Cackling Goose (at left) with a diminutive interior Canada Goose essentially overlapping in mass. Both are close to shore and fully alert (outstretched necks, etc). Note the difference between the two re: neck length and girth; bill morphology; pale feather edgings along back (emarginations); breast coloration; head size and shape. Andrew Haydon Park — 1 October 2013. Myth: the bill is extremely short, stubby & strongly triangular in shape Compared to other subspecies of Cacking Geese, the bill on hutchinsii averages long and thin, often showcasing a slight droop nearest the tip. Occasionally, the bill is very short and triangular like westerner, minima (Mlodinow et al. 2008). Myth: a white necklace means some other subspecies © Jon Ruddy 2016 Page 3 Figure 7: A necklaced cackler. At the time, I thought I may have come across some sort of western subspecies. I sent Ken Abraham (OMNR Waterfowl expert) an email and he responded: “In a sample of fall migrant B. hutchinsii from Thunder Bay that I examined in 2005-2006, 23 of 82 had good white neck rings. Banding data have linked those birds to Baffin Island. I don’t know what the percentages are from other areas within the Cackling goose breeding range, but I suspect they are not uncommon. Occasionally one will have the very strong markings that your bird shows.” Carp River Floodplain — 16 November 2013. __________________________________________________________________________ Richardson’s (hutchinsii) Cackling vs. Interior (interior) Canada Figure 8: By late October in southern Ont., countless Interior Canada Geese have migrated south from the Hudson Bay Lowlands and stage in various ponds, fields, etc until freeze-up. Some of these geese are esp. small-bodied and short-necked and are quite difficult to confidently separate from large Richardson’s Cackling Geese. There are a variety of methods, indices and adages re: Cackling Goose ID, but the nail-in-the-coffin features all stem from the head: The skull is noticeably small in Cackling (appears esp. pin-headed in some examples) and averages “blocky” in shape — a feature derived from a steep forehead and slight peak to the rear of the crown. The bill is well short of the length of the head and, even though hutchinsii avg the narrowest bills of all Cackling subspecies, is usually quite triangular in shape and sometimes shows a light droop at the tip. Textbook Richardson’s at left and a textbook Interior Canada at right. The Cackling was on shore and we were only 10 m from it — a great study! Andrew Haydon Park, Ottawa — 26 October 2015. _________________________________________________________________________ © Jon Ruddy 2016 Page 4 Lesser Canada Goose (B. c. parvipes)…? Cackling Geese with gently sloped foreheads and rounded, dome-like crowns can be seen throughout a season of goose-watching here in eastern Ontario. I believe these geese hail from mid-western Arctic populations (what western birders term “parvipes”). From a strictly eastern Ontario perspective, I do not subscribe to classifying these birds as a separate subspecies; to me, it appears quite possible that there’s a gradual cline towards more “parvipes”-like characteristics of breeding birds throughout the mid-western Arctic. For a detailed overview of the occurrence of B. c. parvipes here in Ontario, please refer to Ken Abraham’s article: http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/articles.cacklinggoose. Figure 9: A photo of a probable Cackling Goose (at rear) that is not safely identifiable to subspecies. The “gentle”, elegant expression of this bird is a far cry from the typical blocky- headed, stocky hutchinsii Cackling Goose. Note the smooth transition from base of bill to its crown, which is rounded, or, “domed” in appearance. The rear of the crown lacks the peak that is often seen on hutchinsii cacklers; instead, what is seen is a smooth and rounded finish. I followed this bird through a variety of postures and this “look” was maintained throughout. Structurally, this bird looks quite similar to the birds in the photos from Queen Maud Gulf, Figure 10 (see below). Richmond, Ontario — April 2014. Figure 10: Six Cackling Geese showcasing the drooping “Roman’s Nose” bill that is often seen with hutchinsii Cackling Geese but also with gently-sloped foreheads and smooth, dome-shaped crowns. The necks are ever so slightly thinner than avg hutchinsii, availing an elegant expression. Examine the size difference compared to the two interior Canada Geese (at front right). Are they cacklers? Where from? Almonte Sewage Lagoons — 6 October 2014. © Jon Ruddy 2016 Page 5 Figure 11: An example of the birds described above compared to “classic” hutchinsii. Careful examination of head shape, and overall GISS reveals these birds to be *quite clearly to my eyes* of two distinct populations. Are the top birds indicative of mid-western Arctic birds (where parvipes-like characteristics seem to originate) and the bottom, more-so eastern Arctic? Both are small-bodied white-cheeked geese. Cross-reference the birds in the upper shot above with the birds photographed from Queen Maud and Southampton Island below… ________________________________________________________________________ Cackling Geese from Arctic Breeding Grounds Figure 12: Cackling with Greater White-fronted Geese – central arctic (mainland south of Queen Maud Gulf). © Jon Ruddy 2016 Page 6 Figure 13: A close up head-shot of a Cackling Goose – central arctic (mainland south of Queen Maud Gulf). Figure 14: Cackling Geese – all with outstretched necks, showcasing alert postures.
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