Richardson's Cackling Goose - Weld County, CO - January 2014
Photographs taken in Frederick on 3 January 2013. The first bird in this series of five is an immature, which can be discerned by the fuzzy border between black neck and chest. Note that these birds show a goodly variation in bill shape and chest color and one sports a nice white neck collar (not that rare in Richardson's Cackling). These all show pretty much the typical Richardson's Cackling Goose head shape, with a steep but short forehead, a somewhat flat crown tilting upwards towards rear, and then a bit of an angle as the crown moves into the nape. Also, the cheek patch is indented.
Richardson's Cackling Goose - Weld County, CO - January 2014
Photographs taken in Frederick on 3 January 2013. The first bird in this series of five is an immature, which can be discerned by the fuzzy border between black neck and chest. Note that these birds show a goodly variation in bill shape and chest color and one sports a nice white neck collar (not that rare in Richardson's Cackling). These all show pretty much the typical Richardson's Cackling Goose head shape, with a steep but short forehead, a somewhat flat crown tilting upwards towards rear, and then a bit of an angle as the crown moves into the nape. Also, the cheek patch is indented.