Pink-footed Goose

Head and upper neck are dark brown, contrasting with a paler grey-brown breast and body. Mantle and upperwing coverts are grey-brown with pale fringes. Rump is greyish-white, and the tail is dark with a white tip. Juveniles resemble adults but are generally duller with less distinct barring.

Small compact size, short dark-and-pink bill, pink legs, brown head and neck contrasting with pale grey-brown breast, and greyish upperwing coverts.

Length: 60-75 cm; Wingspan: 135-170 cm; Weight: 1.8-3.4 kg.

A high-pitched, musical, and talkative two-note 'wink-wink' or 'fee-unk' call, higher-pitched than the call of the Greylag Goose.

Herbivorous; feeds on grasses, agricultural crops (such as potatoes, sugar beets, and grain leftovers), roots, and leaves.

Breeds in tundra cliffs, plateaus, and near rivers in the high Arctic. Winters in agricultural land, coastal marshes, and estuaries.

Migratory; undertakes regular long-distance migrations between high Arctic breeding grounds and temperate European wintering areas.

Nests on cliff ledges, steep slopes, or islands in the Arctic to avoid predators. Lays 3 to 6 cream-white eggs in a scrape lined with down and plant material.

Bean Goose (Anser fabalis), which is larger with a longer, more extensive orange-yellow and black bill without the pink band.

Acts as a seed disperser and grazes on vegetation, which can influence plant community composition in both breeding and wintering grounds.

Least Concern (LC), with an increasing population trend.

Look for large flocks feeding in agricultural fields, particularly stubble fields, potatoes, and grassland, often associated with other geese species like Greylag or Barnacle geese.

Pink-footed geese are known for their strong family bonds and highly synchronized flock movements, often flying in disciplined V-formations during migration.