Canada Goose
Branta canadensis
Also called Canadian goose, honker.
Once a symbol of migration and now a year-round resident of parks and playing fields across the continent. The white chinstrap identifies it instantly.
- Size
- Goose or large raptor — 76–110 cm
- Bill
- Flat and broad
- Where
- water, open field, city
- Season
- year round
What it looks like
Brown-bodied with a black head and neck and a broad white chinstrap running up the side of the face. Pale chest, black bill and legs.
The checks that confirm it
- A white chinstrap on a black head and neck.
- Pale brown chest against the black neck — a sharp boundary.
- White band under the tail, obvious in flight.
- Flies in V formation, calling continuously.
Voice
A loud two-note honk, higher from females.
Attracting it
Do not feed them bread, which causes wing deformity in young birds. Mown grass to a water's edge is what attracts them, and letting it grow long is what discourages them.
Confused with
Much smaller with a stubbier bill and a steeper forehead. Effectively a miniature version, and split from Canada goose as a separate species in 2004.
Smaller and darker, with a small white neck patch rather than a chinstrap, and coastal.
Questions about this bird
How do you identify a canada goose?
A white chinstrap on a black head and neck. Pale brown chest against the black neck — a sharp boundary.
What does a canada goose sound like?
A loud two-note honk, higher from females.
How do you attract a canada goose?
Do not feed them bread, which causes wing deformity in young birds. Mown grass to a water's edge is what attracts them, and letting it grow long is what discourages them.