THE CANADA GOOSE. 



" Steering north, with raucous cry, 



Through tracts and provinces of sky, 



Every night alighting down 



In new landscapes of romance, 



Where darkling feed the clamorous clans 



By lonely lakes to men unknown." 



JORTH AMERICA at large 

 is the range of this mag- 

 nificent bird. Common Wild 

 Goose and Grey Goose 

 are its other names, 

 and by which it is generally known. 

 The Canada Goose is by far the most 

 abundant and universally distributed 

 of all North American Geese, and in 

 one or other of its varieties is found in 

 all the states and territories of our 

 country except perhaps Florida and 

 the Gulf States. In Texas, however, 

 it is plentiful during the winter 

 months. According to Hallock, 

 although by far the greater portion of 

 Wild Geese which pass the winter 

 with us, go north to breed, still in 

 suitable localities young are reared all 

 over the United States from North 

 Carolina to Canada. They nest in 

 the wilder parts of Maine, and are 

 especially numerous in Newfoundland 

 near the secluded pools and streams so 

 abundant throughout that island. 

 There, remote from man, they breed 

 undisturbed on the edges and islands 

 of the ponds and lakes. The Geese 

 moult soon after their arrival in the 

 spring, and, says Hallock, owing to the 

 loss of their pinion feathers are unable 

 to fly during the summer or breeding 

 seasons, but they can run faster than a 

 man on the marshes, or if surprised at 

 or near a pond, they will plunge in 

 and remain under water with their 

 bills only above the surface to permit 

 breathing, until the enemy has 

 passed by. They feed on berries and 



the seeds of grasses. Both the old and 

 young become enabled to fly in Sep- 

 tember, and as soon after that as the 

 frost affects the berries, and causes the 

 seeds of the grasses on the marshes 

 and savannas to fall to the earth, or 

 otherwise when the snow falls and 

 covers the ground, they collect in 

 flocks and fly off to the southern shores 

 of the island, and from thence to the 

 Gulf of St. Lawrence, where they re- 

 main until December, and then 

 assembled, take flight in immense 

 flocks to the southern parts of Amer- 

 ica, to return in the spring. 



The Canada Goose also breeds in 

 great numbers on the Mississipi river, 

 in which region it often places its nest 

 in trees, choosing generally a cotton- 

 wood stub not more than thirty feet in 

 height. The young are said to be 

 carried from the nest to the water in 

 the mother's bill, as are the young of 

 the Wood Duck. (See BIRDS, vol. ii, 

 p. 21). 



The Wild Goose is often domesti- 

 cated, and in many portions of the 

 country they are bred in considerable 

 numbers. When these birds return 

 south at the commencement of winter 

 they are generally very thin and poor, 

 being quite worn out by their long 

 journey. They soon recuperate, how- 

 ever, and in a short time become fat 

 and are delicious eating. A full and ex- 

 cellent account of the method of cap- 

 turing the Canada Goose may be found 

 in Hallock' s " Gazetteer." 



