The Lincolnshire Bird Club

John Walker and Monica and Myself had 13 Adult Snow Geese cropping the grass in a waterlogged field just outside of Skegness today.
This morning they were feeding with Greylags but on our return this afternoon they were still in the field on their own.
Make of this record what you will - they all looked perfectly good adult birds and no rings were seen.

As a result of stopping to watch these Geese on our way to Gib we dipped on the Black-bellied Dipper on the dipping pool. Where else would this species turn up at Gib Pt!!!!

I also had a cheeping Siberian type Chiffchaff in my garden today.

Directions possible? Skegness is a big place...

The waterlogged field is next to the A158 on the right just past the entrance to the Seaview Caravan Park as you approach Skegness.

Still present 1pm today. Cant be REAL birds surely???

Nige

Are they still there?

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Should be. do the RFBT first though.

Where do you reckon they're from Nige?

EDIT: or anyone for that matter

As all 13 birds are unringed and in good plumage with no hint
of adulteration, and 2 single snowgeese are currently in Scotland,
one has to wonder especially with the recent major influx of american migrants and pinkfoots and whoopers ??? so why not genuine? John.

Snow geese have been breeding further east and expanding their range and numbers for the last 20 years and have been almost annual in scotland for almost all that period. Norfolk has also received annual birds for probably 5-6 years but i am unsure of the status as far as the bou is concerned. It would be unusual but by no means impossible for them to be wild birds but surely worth a look, you can never say never with birds. Just because they should not be here does not mean anything, turnstones make the trip in large numbers annually so make your own decision but surely worth a look at a species which i think will become a more regular sighting in the next few years.

Terry Whalin

Guilty as charged - no excuses - most of the geese were not Snow Geese.!! I'm blaming the Black-bellied Dipper - John and I received the BbD news as we got to the 'Snow Geese'. The first 2 or 3 birds we looked at were ok with black wing tips and the 13 birds were spread out amongst the Grey lags - so we decided to try and check the legs for rings which we hurriedly did without really looking at the other white geese properly. So we don't know how many actual Snow Geese there were - then off we rushed to Gib.. Perhaps somebody can post how many birds without black wing tips are present. I haven't had a look since.

I was there at 9am and saw no geese that I thought were snow geese. It was chucking it down so I didn't stay long with a bluetail to chase at Chapel six marsh(unsuccessfully!) Cheers. Rick

So what are they if they're not Snow Geese? Surely not farmyard types?

Thought I'd bump up this thread - what was the conclusion regarding the identification of these birds, if would be good to clarify this as Josh suggests. If there were just 3 or 4 with feral Greylags then I would consider them extremely unikely to be of wild origin. Considering the circumstances even if there were 13 the balance of probability imo would still rest with feral origin. Snow Goose has AC2E* status in the UK, meaning that it occurs as a vagrant, as an established exotic and as an escape. Without a USDI/CWS ring on (or with any dodgy ring on), any are going to be suspect, even when with carrier species at an appropriate season at west coast sites.

This from Dudley (2005)
Snow Goose Anser caerulescens AE*

Retain on Category A of the British List.

Admit to Category C2 of the British List.

Continue to encourage record submission to monitor any further establishment.

1991 A survey of introduced geese found 160–182 birds at 27 sites (Delany 1995). Argyll: a population on the Isle of Mull totalling 40 birds (including six blue morph A. c. caerulescens'Lesser Snow Goose'), 14 of which were juveniles (see below). Gloucestershire: one site, 22 birds 'grounded'. Hampshire: one site, a flock of 12 birds including one juvenile, present in June/July (wandering to Berkshire). Norfolk: one site, 23 A. c. caerulescens, including four juveniles. Oxfordshire: one site, a flock of 32 (see below). Also recorded from Orkney, Cumbria, Leicestershire, Bedfordshire and seven un-named counties.

2000 A survey of introduced geese found 86 birds at 17 sites (no mention of the Argyll flock – see 1991, 2001 and 2002) (Rowell et al. 2004). Hampshire: two pairs bred at a regular site rearing four young (see below). Argyll: the introduced flock of 30–40 birds present, but no reports of breeding (see below) (Ogilvie & RBBP 2002).

2001 Hampshire: a single bird paired with a Greylag Goose reared three young (see below). Argyll: the flock of 30–40 birds present, but no reports of breeding (Ogilvie & RBBP 2003).

2002 Hampshire: two pairs present but no breeding confirmed. Argyll: 24 adults raised ten goslings (see below) (Ogilvie & RBBP 2004).

Argyll
Birds in a waterfowl collection in northwest Mull were left full-winged sometime in the 1950s or 1960s and, by the 1970s, had built up to 40–50 birds, apparently breeding within the collection and in its vicinity. It has remained at this level ever since, with the highest count being of 57 on Mull in January 1981. In 1985, breeding was confirmed on Coll (Newton 1989) and, in the last 5–10 years, most if not all breeding appears to have taken place there. Counts of breeding birds are not undertaken annually, but success has been noted in 1993 (two pairs bred), 1994 (one pair bred), 1996 (two pairs bred), 1997 (five pairs raised at least 16 young), 1998 (four young fledged), 2000 (nine pairs raised at least 28 young) and 2002 (ten young seen). Despite these numbers of young being reared, the total population in the area has not increased, suggesting either relatively high mortality or, perhaps, emigration, though there are no sightings in western Scotland that could be attributed to this (Argyll Bird Club, Ogilvie & RBBP 2002, 2003). It is considered that the Argyll population is self-sustaining.

Hampshire
An increasing number of birds has been encountered in the county with 29 present in 1996, including five breeding pairs (no young seen) at Eversley. Numbers declined to 13 in 2003 with one or two pairs attempting to breed annually at Stratfield Saye (young seen in 1999 and 2000), including a mixed pair with Greylag Goose (Hampshire Ornithological Society, Ogilvie & RBBP 2002, 2003). This declining and localized population is not considered to be self-sustaining, although continued monitoring is recommended as this could change.

Oxfordshire
Following an increasing number of records in the 1970s, breeding was first confirmed in 1980 when a pair raised five young in the Lower Windrush area, with two pairs breeding successfully in 1981. The number of birds present in the county increased and a pattern emerged with breeding around Stanton Harcourt and Lynch Hill area, and the flock spending much of the non-breeding season at Blenheim. Numbers peaked at 33 in 1991 but were reduced to 17 by 2002. Breeding in 1980, 1981, 1986 (confirmed but no details), 1987 (three young), 1991 (two fledged young), 1992 (two fledged young), 1995 (bred but no young raised), 1993 (bred but no young raised), 1998 (one young), 1999 (six young fledged) and 2000 (one young fledged) (Oxfordshire Ornithological Society, Ogilvie & RBBP 2002, 2003). This declining localized population is not considered to be self-sustaining, although monitoring is recommended as this could change.

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Dr Alexander C. Lees
Lecturer in tropical ecology
Manchester Metropolitan University

Lab Associate
Cornell Lab of Ornithology,
Cornell University

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