THE BIRDS OF HELIGOLAND 521 



The nesting stations of the Bean Goose do not extend so far 

 south as those of the preceding species in Norway not lower than 

 64 N. lat. ; from thence its breeding range extends through Fin- 

 inark, northern Finland, and the whole of northern Asia. 



316. Pink-footed Goose [KURZSCHNABEL-GANS]. 

 ANSER BRACHYRHYNCHUS, BaiUon. 



Pink-footed Goose. Dresser, vi. 369. 



Oie a bee court. Temnunck, Manuel, iv. 520. 



So far as I know, this Goose has only been killed here three 

 times. Unfortunately the first of these examples, an old bird with 

 nearly pure rust-coloured neck, went to ruin. I obtained a some- 

 what younger individual on the 30th of March 1880, which is in 

 my collection ; and a young bird was shot in October. The species 

 must be altogether of rare occurrence in Germany, otherwise 

 Naumann could never have overlooked it ; for it is impossible to 

 confound a freshly-shot old bird of this species with any other 

 European form of Grey Goose, not only by reason of its strikingly 

 small bill, but also on account of the conspicuous rich rosy-red 

 (rosenrothe) colour of this organ. Temminck describes this colour 

 as a vivid purple red ; but it is only about twenty-four hours after 

 the death of the bird that the red colour becomes darker. The 

 feet are of a lighter red than the bill, and neither had in the 

 specimens which passed through my hands the least touch of 

 yellow or orange. 



The head and neck of this Goose are of a pronounced rust-colour. 

 The outer flight-feathers are invariably very light-bluish ash grey 

 (bldulich aschgrau) ; this colour also extends to the largest of the 

 outer wing-coverts, which, moreover, have very broad pure white tips. 

 There is also a great deal of pure white in the markings of the tail, 

 which in this respect have no resemblance to those of A. segetum, 

 but are almost like those of very old examples of A. cinereus ; in 

 fact, A. brachyrhynchus is altogether much nearer to the latter 

 species in the whole of its coloration. Apart from this, the wings 

 of the present species project four centimetres (1-56 ins.) beyond the 

 tail, whereas in the Bean Goose they are of equal length with it, and 

 in the Grey Lag Goose recede considerably behind its apex. The 

 measurements of the old bird described above are : Total length, 

 26-38 ins. (670 mm.); wings, 1614 ins. (410 mm.); tail, 5'51 ins. 

 (140 mm.); beak, 1 "69 in. (43 mm.); tarsus, 2-95 ins. (75 mm.); 

 middle toe, 2'95 ins. (75 mm.). 



The beak is rosy-red, the nail being black, as are also the 



