Buff Back and Grey Back Goose
Buff Back grower — Malcolm Reeves Of the standardised British indigenous breeds, the Buff Back and Grey Back are priority breeds on the Rare Breed Survival Trust’s watchlist. Medium breed Domesticated Greylag Goose Anser anser Pied geese are typical European geese. The pied or ‘spot’ gene is popular in many countries surrounding the North Sea […]
Brecon Buff
Brecon Buff Geese – Lesley Burgoyne Brecon Buff goslings – Lesley Burgoyne Medium breed Domesticated Greylag Goose Anser anser The history of the Brecon Buff was documented by its originator, Rhys Llewellyn from South Wales. He discovered buff females in the farmyard geese of the Brecon Beacons and, using a white gander, produced a pure-breeding […]
Black-headed Duck
Black-headed Duck — Alex Levitskiy This curious South American duck was once thought to be a link between the dabbling ducks and the stifftails. First described by Merrem in Buenos Aires, Argentina in 1841, the Black-headed Duck was then included in the genus Anas. Now it has a genus of its own – Hetronetta. Superficially […]
Bean Geese
(Western?) Bean Goose — Ian Gereg There are three subspecies of Taiga Bean GooseAnser fabalis recognised: Western A. f. fabalis — Large brown goose with long neck and comparatively long, thin bill. Black and orange bill, orange legs; darker on head than other grey geese within range. Breeds western Eurasian taiga; winters western Europe. Johansen’s A. f. johanseni — Intermediate […]
Blue-winged Goose
Blue-winged Goose – Rosemary Sharpe This species has a very restricted range, favouring freshwater lakes, swamps and rivers in the highlands of Ethiopia. Cyanochen cyanoptera Mitochondrial DNA has recently revealed that the (Abyssinian) Blue-winged Goose is most closely related to the Hartlaub’s Duck than any other species. They have a genus to themselves. In appearance, […]
Spectacled Duck
Spectacled Ducks – Rosemary Sharpe The species was traditionally placed in the genus Anas, but it is quite distinct from those birds and sits in a genus all of its own. The closest relatives are the Crested Duck Lophonetta specularoides and the Brazilian Teal Amazonetta brasiliensis. Both these are also monotypic. Spectacled Duck family – […]
Franconian Goose
Franconian Goose – Denise Moss Franconian Goose family – Pietro Testa Franconian Geese – Priscilla Middleton Light breed Domesticated Greylag Goose Anser anser This is an old breed that developed along the flood plains of the winding Rivers Main and Frånkische Saale. This area was part of the former Duchy of Franconia, in southern Germany. […]
Cayuga
Cayuga Duck — Rupert Stephenson Cayuga Ducks — Val Kitt Heavy duck breed Domesticated Mallard Anas platyrhynchos (x American Black Duck Anas rubripes?) This breed takes its name from Cayuga Lake (which is itself named after the native Cayuga People). Some assumptions are made that it is partly descended from the American Black Duck, which […]
Falkland Steamerduck
Pair of Falkland Steamerducks, male at the front — Roger Spink Young Falkland Steamerducks — Morag Jones Tachyeres brachypterus The Falkland Steamerduck is known locally as the ‘Logger Duck’. It is an endemic species to the Falkland Islands, and as such naturally has a relatively small population of <16,000 pairs. This is the smallest of […]
American Buff Goose
Heavy breed Domesticated Greylag Goose Anser anser Standardised in the USA in 1947, this breed was first imported into the UK in the 1970s. It was standardised in the UK in 1982. It is believed to originate from Pomerania, and to have an origin linked with the Pomeranian Goose, which are known for producing Buff […]
