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Ducks, Geese and Swans (Anatidae)

Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) - HBW 1, p. 583

French: Bernache du Canada German: Kanadagans Spanish: Barnacla Canadiense
Other common names: Aleutian Canada Goose (leucopareia); Cackling Canada Goose (minima); Taverner Canada Goose (taverneri); Dusky Canada Goose (occidentalis); Vancouver Canada Goose (fulva); Lesser Canada Goose (parvipes); Moffitt Canada Goose (moffitti); Giant Canada Goose (maxima); Baffin Island Canada Goose (hutchinsii); Hudson Bay Canada Goose (interior); Atlantic Canada Goose (canadensis)

Taxonomy: Anas canadensis Linnaeus, 1758, Canada.
Hybridized in captivity with several species of Branta, Anser, Cygnus, also with Alopochen aegyptiacus and Cairina moschata; in the wild only rarely with Anser caerulescens. Taxonomic status of subspecies not clear, mainly due to presence of many intergrading zones between two or more races; several, especially taverneri, not accepted by some authors, while others split the complex into as many as four distinct species; race asiatica, described from Commander and Kuril Is and listed as extinct in first edition of Red Data Book, now cons.. View all taxonomy...

Taxonomy: Anas canadensis Linnaeus, 1758, Canada.
Hybridized in captivity with several species of Branta, Anser, Cygnus, also with Alopochen aegyptiacus and Cairina moschata; in the wild only rarely with Anser caerulescens. Taxonomic status of subspecies not clear, mainly due to presence of many intergrading zones between two or more races; several, especially taverneri, not accepted by some authors, while others split the complex into as many as four distinct species; race asiatica, described from Commander and Kuril Is and listed as extinct in first edition of Red Data Book, now considered synonymous with leucopareia. Eleven subspecies normally recognized.

Subspecies and Distribution:

  • leucopareia (Brandt, 1836) - Aleutian Is.
  • minima Ridgway, 1885 - coastal W Alaska.
  • taverneri Delacour, 1951 - Alaska Peninsula to Mackenzie Delta.

     See all 11 subspecies
  • leucopareia (Brandt, 1836) - Aleutian Is.
  • minima Ridgway, 1885 - coastal W Alaska.
  • taverneri Delacour, 1951 - Alaska Peninsula to Mackenzie Delta.
  • occidentalis (Baird, 1858) - SW Alaska.
  • fulva Delacour, 1951 - coastal S Alaska, W British Columbia.
  • parvipes (Cassin, 1852) - inland Canada.
  • moffitti Aldrich, 1946 - Great Basin of Canada.
  • maxima Delacour, 1951 - coastal W Alaska.
  • hutchinsii (Richardson, 1832) - NC Canada.
  • interior Todd, 1938 - C & E Canada.
  • canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) - E Canada.
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