Barnacle Goose

The barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis) is a medium-sized waterfowl of the order Anseriformes, family Anatidae, with a length of 55 to 70 cm, a wingspan of 130 to 145 cm and a weight of 1.2 to 2.2 kg. It is easily recognised by its white face, which contrasts with the black head, neck and breast, while the back is grey with black and white barring and the belly is white.

In flight it can be recognised by a white V-shaped band visible at the rear, as well as by its short black bill and legs.

It breeds on Arctic islands such as Greenland, Svalbard and Novaya Zemlya, and spends the winter mainly on the coasts of western Europe: the British Isles, the Baltic Sea and the North Sea. Individuals occasionally turn up in southern Europe.

It is a plant-eating species that feeds on the leaves, roots and seeds of aquatic plants such as bulrushes and reeds, as well as mosses, herbs and white clover; in winter it supplements its diet with grain and other vegetation.

The breeding season runs from May to July. It nests in colonies that usually gather between 5 and 50 pairs, although they can reach up to 150. Each clutch consists of 4 to 6 white eggs, with an incubation period of about 25 days. The goslings take around seven weeks to fly, and the adults undergo their annual moult in July and August, lasting 3 or 4 weeks.

Barnacle goose goslings, barely three days after hatching, launch themselves from the cliffs where the nests are in order to reach the ground and follow their parents. In the Middle Ages there was a legend that these birds were born from barnacles, which is where part of their name in several languages comes from. The maximum recorded longevity for the species is 28 years and 2 months.