lesser snow goose

The lesser snow goose (Chen caerulescens caerulescens) is a North American bird belonging to the family Anatidae. This species is characterized by its white plumage and black wingtips, with pink legs and a bill featuring a black "grin".1

Lesser snow geese breed in the Arctic and migrate to areas like California and Japan. A dark-colored phase, known as the blue goose, is now recognized as part of this subspecies, and these color forms interbreed. Their specialized bills allow them to feed on various plant materials, including seeds, leaves, and roots of grasses and sedges. Snow geese are believed to mate for life and nest in colonies, with females selecting nesting sites and building nests from grasses lined with down.1

Historically, overhunting significantly reduced their numbers, but populations have since recovered and even increased substantially.1