Ross's Goose
General Description
The Ross' Goose is a small goose, similar in appearance to the Snow Goose. Like the Snow Goose, the Ross' Goose has a light and dark morph, although the dark-morph Ross' Goose is extremely rare. The light morph is white, and the dark morph is gray with a white head. Both morphs have black primaries. The bill is small and lacks the 'grin-patch' seen on the Snow Goose. Juveniles are mostly gray.
Habitat
The Arctic nesting grounds of the Ross' Goose, not discovered until 1938, consist of tundra, marshes, and ponds. In winter and during migration, these geese can be found in shallow lakes, fresh-water marshes, flooded fields, and other agricultural lands.
Behavior
Ross' Geese are usually in flocks, often mixed with Snow Geese. Their tendency to roost in tight flocks and be easily attracted to decoys may have made them vulnerable to market hunters, who had a significant impact on the population. These geese typically forage on the ground, wading or swimming in shallow water.
Diet
Almost exclusively plant-eaters, Ross' Geese eat grasses, sedges, and grain. In the fall, they eat more seeds and grains than grasses.
Nesting
Ross' Geese breed in colonies, starting in their second or third year. The nest is on an island or the shore of a tundra lake, often situated at the edge of a low thicket. The nest, built by the female after she lays her first egg, is a bulky pile of leaves, grass, and moss, depressed in the middle and lined with down. The female lays a total of 4 eggs and incubates them for about 3 weeks. The young leave the nest shortly after hatching. The parents lead the young to water and food, and the goslings feed themselves. The male stands guard and actively defends the young against predators. The young fledge at 40 to 45 days.
Migration Status
The vast majority of the population nests in the Queen Maud Gulf Migratory Bird Sanctuary in the central Canadian Arctic. They migrate to California's Central Valley, often in mixed flocks with other geese.
Conservation Status
The population of Ross' Geese was estimated at only 2,000 to 3,000 individuals in 1931. Protection from hunting has helped the Ross' Goose population recover to a 1988 total of 188,000 breeding birds, although it is still listed as a species-of-concern on the Partners in Flight watch list. Still on the increase, populations are now thought to be expanding their range greatly--birds have been found farther east and west in recent years during migration. Most nesting occurs within a refuge, and hunting is still prohibited, but loss of migration stopover and wintering habitat continues to threaten the Ross' Goose.
When and Where to Find in Washington
The Ross' Goose is a rare species, but is becoming more common in Washington. You may occasionally find it mixed in with Snow Geese or other mixed-species flocks in the winter in the lowlands on both sides of the Cascades, in both fresh- and saltwater habitats. Flocks of up to 30 Ross' Geese have become fairly regular in the spring and fall in far-eastern Washington.
Abundance
Ecoregion | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Oceanic | ||||||||||||
Pacific Northwest Coast | ||||||||||||
Puget Trough | R | R | R | R | R | R | ||||||
North Cascades | ||||||||||||
West Cascades | ||||||||||||
East Cascades | ||||||||||||
Okanogan | R | R | R | R | ||||||||
Canadian Rockies | R | R | R | R | ||||||||
Blue Mountains | ||||||||||||
Columbia Plateau | R | R | R |
Washington Range Map
North American Range Map
Family Members
- Fulvous Whistling-DuckDendrocygna bicolor
- Taiga Bean-GooseAnser fabalis
- Greater White-fronted GooseAnser albifrons
- Emperor GooseChen canagica
- Snow GooseChen caerulescens
- Ross's GooseChen rossii
- BrantBranta bernicla
- Cackling GooseBranta hutchinsii
- Canada GooseBranta canadensis
- Mute SwanCygnus olor
- Trumpeter SwanCygnus buccinator
- Tundra SwanCygnus columbianus
- Wood DuckAix sponsa
- GadwallAnas strepera
- Falcated DuckAnas falcata
- Eurasian WigeonAnas penelope
- American WigeonAnas americana
- American Black DuckAnas rubripes
- MallardAnas platyrhynchos
- Blue-winged TealAnas discors
- Cinnamon TealAnas cyanoptera
- Northern ShovelerAnas clypeata
- Northern PintailAnas acuta
- GarganeyAnas querquedula
- Baikal TealAnas formosa
- Green-winged TealAnas crecca
- CanvasbackAythya valisineria
- RedheadAythya americana
- Ring-necked DuckAythya collaris
- Tufted DuckAythya fuligula
- Greater ScaupAythya marila
- Lesser ScaupAythya affinis
- Steller's EiderPolysticta stelleri
- King EiderSomateria spectabilis
- Common EiderSomateria mollissima
- Harlequin DuckHistrionicus histrionicus
- Surf ScoterMelanitta perspicillata
- White-winged ScoterMelanitta fusca
- Black ScoterMelanitta nigra
- Long-tailed DuckClangula hyemalis
- BuffleheadBucephala albeola
- Common GoldeneyeBucephala clangula
- Barrow's GoldeneyeBucephala islandica
- SmewMergellus albellus
- Hooded MerganserLophodytes cucullatus
- Common MerganserMergus merganser
- Red-breasted MerganserMergus serrator
- Ruddy DuckOxyura jamaicensis