Canada Goose

Up until the second half of the 1900's (remember the 1900s?), the Canada Goose was a common visitor in Louisiana in the wintertime. Then, the Canada Geese stopped coming. It's commonly believed that an increase in habitat and food to the north of us caused the birds to simply not fly as far south as they used to.

Within a few years, different Canada Geese began to show up. Unlike the bigger Canadas that had once called Louisiana their winter home, these new Canadas were small geese, sometimes not much bigger than ducks. They clearly came from a different source.

Recently, these two groups of Canadas have also been determined to be different species altogether, despite their close resemblance in pattern. The smaller birds now have the species name Cackling Goose, while the larger ones get to keep the name Canada Goose. In Louisiana, Cackling Goose is now very common in winter. However, true, wild Canadas are now considered rare.

To complicate the matter a bit more, feral Canada Geese have built populations across the state. These geese are of the "Giant" race of the Canada Goose. Birders can't count them as wild birds because...well, because they're not wild.

On February 6, 2010, Dave Patton and I were scanning a flock of about 20,000 Snow Geese just north of Wright, Louisiana (home of the sign that lets travelers know, "If you lived in Wright you'd be home now.") when we chanced upon the goose above. It seemed intermediate in size between the wild little Cacklings that winter here and the feral Giant Canadas that nest nearby in Lake Arthur. Its bill was long and straight, not short and stubby like a Cackling. It appears to be a true, wild Canada.