Newsletter / Blog
2012-02-11 How old was the oldest recorded Pink-footed Goose.
The oldest recordedPink-footed Goose - Anser brachyrhynchus – was 40 years 11
months.
They breed in
eastern Greenland, Iceland
and Svalbard and winter in northwest Europe, Britain,
Netherlands and Denmark.
It is a
medium-sized goose, with a short bill, bright pink in the middle with a black
base and tip, and pink feet. The body is mid grey-brown, the head and neck a
richer, darker brown, the rump and vent white, and the tail grey with a broad
white tip.
Populations have
risen spectacularly over the last 50 years, due largely to increased protection
from shooting on the wintering grounds. Numbers wintering in Great Britain
have risen almost tenfold from 30,000 in 1950 to 292,000 in October 2004. The
numbers wintering in Denmark
and the Netherlands
have also risen, with about 34,000 in 1993.
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