Branta ruficollis

(Pallas, 1769)

Vernacular names
English : Red-breasted goose
French : Bernache à cou roux

Classification
Class : Aves
Order : Anseriformes
Family : Anatidae
Notes : No subspecies known.

Identification
Adults can reach 56 cm in length for a wingspan of 1.30 m and a weight of 1.6 kg. Unmistakable. Large round head with very short black bill. Black and white plumage with bright chestnut brown sides of head and breast patch.

Range and habitat
This species breeds in north Russia, in the central part of northern Siberia. Winters around Black Sea and Caspian Sea. Lives mostly in dry tundra, close to water. Winters in arable lands.

Conservation
IUCN RED LIST : VULNERABLE
CITES : Appendix II
Status : The species has declined because of hunting and destruction of both breeding and wintering grounds. Targeted by conservation program.
Ex-Situ Programs : SSP in America

Observation

 

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