BAR-HEADED GOOSE

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Context: A bar-headed goose, which was tagged in Mongolia in July 2014 has been spotted in Koonthankulam - Kadankulam Bird Sanctuary in Tirunelveli district.

Details:

ABOUT:

• It is one of the winter migratory bird species regularly coming to this sanctuary.
• It can be identified by its signature white and grey plumage with distinct black bars on the head and orange-yellow beak and legs.
• During flight, these birds appear to have all-grey plumage with black wing tips.
• The Bar-headed Goose can cover distances of more than 1,600 km in one day and is known for reaching extreme altitudes of 29,500 feet during its twice-yearly migrations across the Himalayas.

SCIENTIFIC CLASSIFICATION:

• Common Name: bar-headed goose, gray goose
• Kingdom: Animalia
• Phylum: Chordata
• Class: Aves
• Order: Anseriformes
• Family: Anatidae
• Genus Species: Anser(goose) indicus

FAST FACTS:

Description: This species is gray and white with two horseshoe-shaped, brownish-black bars on the back of its white head. The body is gray overall, and the bill and legs are pink, orange, or yellow.

Diet: Includes plants and occasionally crustaceans and invertebrates

Range: The Bar-Headed Goose has an extremely large range and can be found in Afghanistan, Bangladesh Bhutan, China, India; Mongolia; Myanmar; Nepal; Pakistan; Russia, Thailand and Vietnam. The have also been introduced to Canada and Spain.

Habitat: These geese prefer high altitude mountain lakes.

Population: world population is very large with at least 10,000 mature individuals. Their global population appears to be declining but none of their sub-populations are severely fragmented.

Status:

IUCN: Least concern

CITES: Not listed

USFWS:  Not listed

KOONTHANKULAM BIRD SANCTUARY:

• It is a 1.2933 km2 protected area declared as a sanctuary in 1994.
• It adjoins the tiny village of Koonthankulam in Nanguneri Taluk of Tirunelveli district, Tamil Nadu, India.
• It is just 38 km away from Tirunelveli (a bustling town on the banks of the Thamirabarani River).
• This is the largest reserve for breeding water birds in South India. It is an Important Bird Area and has been designated as a protected Ramsar site since 2021.

Fauna:

• More than 43 species of resident and migratory water birds visit here every year.
• More than 100,000 migratory birds start coming by December and fly away to their northern homes by June or July after they lay and hatch eggs and the young ones mature enough to fly with the older ones.
• The following migratory birds visit this area from other countries.
  • Bar-headed goose, Siberia
  • Common sandpiper, Siberia
  • Common teal, Siberia
  • Coot, central Siberia
  • Green sandpiper, Siberia
  • Greater flamingo, northern India
  • Northern pintail, Siberia
  • White stork, central Asia

https://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Madurai/bar-headed-goose-tagged-in-mongolia-spotted-at-koonthankulam-sanctuary/article66458438.ece