To my surprise and relief, the Nature Vancouver group this morning neither drowned nor froze: the cold weather seems to have held off, and our three hours at Jericho Park were rain-free–even if dim and damp.
The big news of the morning was geese. Thirty-four Cackling Geese were on the beach when I arrived, and a couple lingered or returned, scofflaw dog owners notwithstanding, for us all to study at leisure later in the morning. Conveniently, the birds we saw best were mixed with Canada Geese, giving us great opportunities for close-up comparison.
A slightly shyer flock of 13 cacklers out on the grass included a striking leucistic individual.
Odd white patches are very common in Canada Geese, but this was the first time any of us had ever seen a Cackling Goose like this one.
There was more anserine fun in store. Bev picked half a dozen Snow Geese out of a Branta flock high overhead, an infrequent sight here in urban Vancouver. And two adult Greater White-fronted Geese flying circles over the duck pond were even “better” by local standards. It could be an exciting winter at Jericho.
