James L. Cummins

The Lesser Snow Goose by James L. Cummins 

 Anyone who has spent time outdoors during the winter months can testify to the vast numbers of geese found throughout the Mississippi Delta. It seems that each winter, more and more geese are migrating to spend their winters in this habitat-rich environment. \

The majority of geese that migrate to Mississippi are the lesser snow geese. The lesser snow goose has two color phases, a blue phase and a white phase and should not be confused with the smaller, but similar looking Ross’ goose. 

The lesser snow goose is 27 to 31 inches in length and averages around 4.6 pounds for juveniles and 5.7 pounds for adults (Ross’ goose averages 25 inches in length and weighs around 4 pounds). Adults of the white-color phase are completely white with black wingtips and rosy-red feet, legs, and bill. Occasionally, the head has a rusty appearance from feeding where ferrous minerals occur in the soil. Immature white-faced snow geese typically have a gray head, neck, back, and upper wing surface. The wingtips are black, and the bill and legs are grayish brown. Adults of the blue phase (often referred to as “eagle heads”) have a bluish-gray body and a white head, neck, and tail. There are varying amounts of white on the underside of the bird. 

The bill, feet, and legs are rosy red. Snow geese, like most species of geese, first breed at 3 years of age. The female selects a nest site, typically on low, grassy areas of the tundra plains, and builds the nest by “scraping” an area and using nearby plants such as moss, grass, and sedges. 

The clutch size will vary from 2 to 10 eggs. Hatching success is typically 60 to 90%. Incubation is done solely by the female and averages from 19 to 24 days. Both parents take an active role in guarding the brood, but only the female rears the young. The parents lead the brood from the nesting grounds in search of food within a day or two after hatching. Families of snow geese tend to group together and travel in flocks during the migration. 

Snow geese begin migrating from the breeding grounds in mid-August and the bulk of the migration happens in September. During migration, snow geese typically feed largely on agricultural areas of corn and soybeans in the Midwest. As they migrate south, they adjust their diet to include rice and winter wheat. Snow geese winter across much of the south central and western states with the larger concentrations found in the Central Valley of California and the Gulf Coast region of Louisiana and Texas. 

Almost all the snow goose management occurs on migration and wintering areas. As with other waterfowl, management consists primarily of providing geese with food, water, and protection, whether it be in the rice fields of Mississippi and Arkansas, or the coastal marshes of Louisiana.

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