On this page are photos of Canada goose hybrids and close views of goose body parts.
Page 8 of 8

In late November 2015 I noticed this goose with a flock of Canada geese. Based on its coloring I think one parent was a domestic white goose and the other was a Canada goose.
[This profile view of a goose walking through a parking lot shows the shape of a Canada goose, but the coloring is different in places. It has orange legs and feet, a mottled orange and black beak, and more white than normal on its back end, breast, face and neck.]

Here it is beside other Canada geese in the flock. I didn't see it after that, but I did see it again in December 2016, so it must be part of a migrating flock.
[The hybrid goose stands on the right with a normal Canada goose on the left. The hybrid has significantly more white feathers although the outline shapes of the birds match quite well. ]

In December 2016, I noticed this hybrid. Its feet are lighter in color than a pure-bred Canada goose and its bill seemed speckled instead of all black. While the hybrid in the prior photo was noticeably larger than the other Canada geese, this one was not.
[Goose is walking on pavement toward the camera. Its head is turned slightly to the left and cream-colored sections are visible in the black of its beak. It has a white patch around its bill and heading up the center of its head where it stops between the eyes. Its neck is a brown-white mix rather than dark black. One foot is pulled near its body with only the very bottom of the webbing visible. The other foot is flat on the ground and is a light-brown color. ]

These two, who I assume are siblings, were with a group of Canadian geese passing through the area in October 2018. Their feet are not quite orange, but are lighter than the goose in the prior image. While their coloring is very similar, one has a white tail.
[Two images spliced together. Each image contains one goose. The one on the left has a white patch on its breast and a white stripe along its head from its beak up and over the crown of its head. Its head then has a very dark brown stripe beside the white and extending over the top of the head to the neck. The neck is most deep brown (similar the black neck of a Canadian goose). It has pinkish feet with tan legs. The goose in the image on the right has very similar coloring except it has white tail feathers (instead of brown/black) and has a few more whitish speckles on its neck and face than the goose on the left. ]

These two were part of two different groups of Canadian geese passing through the area in December 2021.
[Two images spliced together. Each image contains one goose. On the left is a goose sitting in the grass. Its long neck is black with white speckles all through it as if someone splattered white paint over it. It has has a scattering of white feathers on its topside. On the right is a goose walking through the partking lot. It has a white patch around its bill and on the top of its head. It has more white feathers scattered across its topside than the other goose. This goose has pinkish feet and legs.]

The white color on the side of a goose's head is one continous patch of white on the underside of its head.
[A goose has its beak up in the air exposing the underside of its chin. There is a small black section (like a small notch), but otherwise teh underside is white.]

While all Canada geese have this white patch, the shape of the patch varies. I compared the outlines on photos to determine a second goose was using this nest during the same season in 2020.
[A goose sits on a downy nest facing to the right with her mouth open. She has a dirt hillside behind her. The white patch across her cheek has an indented section of black about the midpoint of her cheek. The top is jutted as if someone bumped the pencil making the rounded portion.]

The edges of a goose's bill are serrated which comes in handy when eating grass blades and other greenery.
[A goose put its beak through an opening in a chain link fence to bite the concrete on the other side. Its mouth is open exposing its tongue. The serrated edges of the lower bill are visible.]

A goose's tongue is only attached at the base like a human's.
(Momma is defending her little ones.)
[An adult goose swimming in the water has its neck fully stretched in front of its body with its mouth fully open and its tongue outstretched and curved downward. Three small goslings swim in front of the adult on its right side.]

Geese have claws on the ends of their webbed feet. This is a gosling's foot.
[Side view of tne black webbed foot of a gosling with three sharp, hook-like protuberances at the ends.]

I noticed quite a few gosling feet with holes in the webbing.
[Top down view of a foot with several, irregular-shaped openings in its webbing.]

The dew claw (4th toe) of a goose doesn't touch the ground when it walks.
[Through the chain-link fence is a back foot of a goose with the short fourth toe with claw attached in the air as the rest of the webbed foot is on the ground.]

The natural bouyancy of a goose means it has to paddle its feet to stay under water like this.
Notice the concentric circles around the legs of the gosling on the right.
[Two geese beside each other in the water have their hind ends in the air while the rest of their bodies are submerged. The goose on the right is completely vertical while the one on the left is at a slant towards the left.]

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Continue to the pages where you watch the goslings grow over time.

All photos © S. M. Garver