Characteristics of the red-breasted goose
The red-breasted goose is a bird with an unusual appearance. To be more precise, this is a breed of waterfowl that belong to the duck family. The goose looks like a small goose. Its plumage is distinguished by colorful flowers, its neck is highlighted in orange. There are white streaks on the sides of the neck, otherwise the bird is black in color.
Red-breasted goose
Story
According to legend, Peter I sent his messenger in 1723 to buy up unusual wild birds and wild animals. The red-breasted goose was included in this list, only earlier such winged geese were known as red geese. The Indian people liked this bird so much that they were ready to exchange several elephants for one representative of the goose.
The red-breasted goose, although it belongs to the order of goose-like, still resembles a mallard in its size, the structure and size of its neck is smaller than that of geese. A characteristic feature of this individual is that its neck is thicker and shorter, with a small beak.
Birds usually reach small sizes, from about 0.52 to 0.57 m, and with a wingspan of 1.15 to 1.34 m. In general, the weight of a goose can reach over 1.6 kg.
The Red-breasted Goose became famous for its amazing plumage, which can be clearly seen in the photographs.
Distinctive features of the breed:
- unique plumage, a combination of white, black and orange;
- red spots on the neck and chest;
- all other parts of the body: the forehead, part of the chest, the whole back are black, but the tail is white;
- also a white border passes through the body of the bird;
- a large and thick white line runs along the chest and between the wings.
Like the ugly duckling, the Red-breasted Goose in childhood has an uninteresting, dull plumage with a poorly developed pattern. There are times when there is no bright brown color on the body at all. With age, the colors become brighter, the pattern develops.
Anyone who is interested in how this bird looks like, it is enough to drive in a request on the Internet: "Red-breasted goose photo". This is a direct way of obtaining a large number of photographs that can convey all the beauty of this bird.
Young geese have more stripes on their wings than their parents.
Habitat
The area where the Red-breasted Goose usually lives is a natural tundra zone in Russia. Almost 75% live in the tundra of Taimyr and adjacent territories (the Pyasina River and Upper Taimyr). This breed does not hibernate in our territories, but flies to the south of the Caspian Sea. An insignificant percentage of nesting is found in the territories of Gydan and Yamal.
The red-breasted goose is under state protection. The Red Book contains a lot of information about this unique beauty and where exactly she lives. Also, the population is listed in the book and various photos of this species are attached. The red-breasted goose is protected by international protection. Hunting for her is strictly prohibited.
For winter nesting, the goose chooses lakes in Bulgaria and Romania. Can fly to Greece for the winter.Oddly enough, the fact that she began to fly to Greece for the winter was discovered quite recently. Previously, the goose was seen only in the south of the Caspian Sea, covering the sides of Iran and Turkmenistan and a little of the Persian Gulf.
In recent years, they began to notice that birds began to fly to the Caspian territory less and less often. Geese increasingly began to fly in the direction of the Black Sea region, and earlier they were also recorded in the Far East.
Behavior
The goose is a very active and energetic bird in itself, it is very sociable and easily gets used to different situations. During the flight, the goose looks more like a red duck than a goose. During a stop, the birds are often noted for their fussiness, rapid movement from place to place, because if it were an ordinary goose, it would behave more calmly.
A goose of any age is an excellent swimmer and diver. Sinking into the water, she makes many sounds: a quiet and hoarse cackle, a cry. This is how the birds communicate with each other, letting them know that everything is fine with them. They are also capable of producing sounds similar to the hissing of a snake.
To create nests, geese prefer bushes and lichens in the tundra. They also love hills, proximity to water, birch trees, weeds. They often nest on the banks of the river with steep climbs, less often they can be found on the rocks.
Food
Geese feed only on greenery, horsetails, roots of various trees, grass, sedge. During the flight, they feed on plants from the steppe and semi-desert, which have dried up, on various grains and grains: millet, barley. Often, animals feed in the same place where they stay for the night. They get food during the day, sometimes they can visit a watering hole.
When a drought strikes, Red-throated birds switch to food, which they can find in deserts or semi-deserts.
Reproduction
Red-breasted geese begin to breed from 3-4 years old, they form pairs during wintering. The mating season begins with dancing males, and then the male must lower his beak into the water and take a vertical stand.
The nesting season for geese occurs once a year, usually in June and July. Birds often nest in flocks of 4-5 pairs in order to protect themselves from predators.
In a pair, it is the female who builds the nest after she has returned from the warm regions. On the Internet, in the picture, the nest looks like a kind of depression on a flat surface, approximately 18-21 cm in diameter, and 6-9 cm deep. The nest is filled with fluff and vegetation.
One clutch of eggs contains from 3 to 10 eggs. Eggs are usually elephant-colored with a touch of green. The female incubates eggs for 25-30 days. The birds hatch at the end of July, and already at the end of August, the parents begin to bring their chicks to the green area. Often they are bred in large groups: this way it is easier to protect chicks from predators.
Reasons for inclusion in the Red Book
From 1950 to 1970, the percentage of this species dropped significantly from 50 thousand representatives to 26-27 thousand. However, today their population is growing rapidly. Disappearance occurs through the fault of man, as well as by the rules of natural selection. "
So, the Red-breasted Goose is a bird that has extraordinary plumage and adapts well to any natural environment. This amazing bird will not leave indifferent any person who has the opportunity to see her.