224 ALLEN'S NATURALIST'S LIBRARY. 



They may be said to be absolutely cosmopolitan in their range, 

 and no country is without them, as far as we know. 



I am indebted to Count Salvadori, who is engaged on the 

 twenty-seventh volume of the "Catalogue of Birds in the 

 British Museum," for giving me his scheme of classification of 

 the Anseres for the benefit of the present volume ; and ever) 

 one who knows the excellence of that author's work will under- 

 stand that his advice has been of material assistance to me. 

 I have mainly followed the order of Mr. Howard Saunders 

 " Manual " for the British species, which varies but little froir 

 that adopted by the Count. My Order Anseriformes is equiva- 

 lent to the Family Anatida of Count Salvadori, who divides the 

 Family into eleven Sub-families, with some of which, being ex- 

 clusively tropical forms, we need not concern ourselves further 

 in the present work. Following, therefore, as nearly as pos- 

 sible, Count Salvadori's system, and merely altering the order 

 of the Geese and Swans, we find that he divides the Anatidce. 

 into three divisions, depending on the presence or absence of 

 a lobe on the hind-toe. Geese and Swans have no lobe, the 

 True Ducks have only a very narrow one ; while the Diving 

 Ducks and the Mergansers have a broad lobe. 



THE GEESE. SUB-FAMILY ANSERINE. 



As already mentioned, the Geese are distinguished by th< 

 absence of a lobe on the hind-toe, which is moderately large 

 the bill is stout and high at the base, and there is no cere 

 They differ from the majority of Ducks in not having an; 

 metallic colours in the plumage and no " wing-speculum." 



The typical " Grey " Geese are mostly birds of the northen 

 parts of the Eastern and Western Hemispheres, the mos 

 southern species being Anser indicus, which inhabits Centra 

 Asia and the Indian Peninsula, and Nesochen sandwichensis, 

 which is confined to the Sandwich Islands. All the species o 

 "Black" or Brent 'Geese are birds of the Arctic Regions, an< 

 occur in temperate latitudes chiefly in winter. In the Souther) 

 Hemisphere their place is taken by the Kelp Geese (Cloephaga 

 of South America and the Maned Goose (Chenonetta) of Au< 

 tralia. 



Four species of Geese have been recorded as British, whic 



