Greylag geese and bean geese migrating

The greylag geese are the largest of our grey geese; the bean geese are just a little smaller but their plumage leaves a much darker impression. We will try to bring out the  differences between these migrants here.

 

Looking at the V formations of flying geese the light front edges of the wings show clearly for greylag geese and their loud cackling sounds somehow familiar: here are the ancestors of our domestic geese. You might like to try to describe the characteristics of the birds on your own from Arne’s photos. Should you succeed in  meeting these cautious birds foraging on the ground the young birds can be distinguished from the adults by their greyish-pink legs.