Snow geese migrate through and spent winter in Richmond BC

The Lesser Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens) breeds in Wrangel Island, Siberia, and in fall migrates down the Pacific Coast of North America to spend the winter in food-rich river estuaries in southern British Columbia, Washington and northern California. It is a large, long-lived bird, weighing 2.5 to 2.7 kg and living 10-20 years in the wild. The birds that we see in Richmond from October to April are a subgroup of the Wrangel Island breeding population known as the Fraser-Skagit flock.

For tens of thousands of years prior to permanent human habitation, snow geese migrated through and spent the winter on the marshlands of the islands that eventually became Richmond. Once Richmond was settled, the geese continued their annual cycle, foraging outside the dykes, using their stout bills to dig for the rhizomes (starchy, underground stems) of marsh plants. The influx from marsh to suburban neighborhood is a recent phenomenon, a continuation of trends that can be traced back several decades that have accompanied an increase in population size.

Видео Snow geese migrate through and spent winter in Richmond BC канала Fisherdale