COMMON CANADA GOOSE 85 



lines, he is sure to tell his friends about it, and perhaps it will even be 

 published in the local paper, as a harbinger of spring or a foreboding of 

 winter. Certainly the Canada Goose commands respect." 



In size the Common Canada Goose is second only to the swans. It 

 has a wing spread between 5 and 61/2 feet and ranges in weight from 7 

 to 14 pounds; it is claimed that specimens have been shot weighing up to 

 18 pounds. On account of its great size and excellent table properties it 

 has probably been hunted as persistently as any other game bird of this 

 continent. Bent (1925) says: "It is so wary, so sagacious, and so difficult 

 to outwit that its pursuit has always fascinated the keen sportsman and 

 taxed his skill and his ingenuity more than any other game bird." By 

 fair means and foul this wonderful bird has been bagged by countless 

 thousands over the years. In spite of the most murderous onslaughts it 

 has somehow managed to hold its own and under the more enlightened 

 game laws of today will probably materially increase in numbers. Let 

 us hope so. 



On migration, Canada Geese often assume the well-known V-shaped 

 formation, with the leader at the head. From time to time during long 

 flights change of leadership will take place. The familiar, resonant honk- 

 honk of these geese in flight, as the 

 leader calls to his flock and they re- 

 spond at frequent intervals, never 

 loses its mystic charm. As Bent 

 (1925) says: "The old ganders know 

 the way and lead their trustful flocks 

 by the straightest and safest route; 

 high in the air, with the earth spread 

 out below them like a map, they fol- 

 low no coast line, no mountain 

 chain, and no river valley; but di- 

 rectly onward over hill and valley, 

 river and lake, forest and plain, city, 

 town, and country, their course points 

 straight to their summer homes. Fly- 

 ing by night or by day, as circum- 

 stances require, they stop only when 

 necessary to rest or feed, and then only in such places as their ex- 

 perienced leaders know to be safe." 



The same writer says: "When flying about their feeding grounds or 

 elsewhere on short flights, they fly in compact or irregular bunches. Their 

 flight then seems heavy and labored, but it is really much stronger and 

 swif ter than it seems, and for such heavy birds they are really quite agile. 

 It is only when travelling long distances that they fly high in the air in 

 the well-known V-shaped flocks, which experience has taught them is 

 the easiest and most convenient for rapid and protracted flight. In this 

 formation the leader, cleaving the air in advance, has the hardest work 



