242 A PRACTICAL HANDBOOK OF BRITISH BIRDS. 



Distribution. — Abroad. — Breeds in tundras of Siberia (and prob- 

 ably Kamtschatka), westward to Kanin and Lapland. Winters in 

 Japan, China and (in small numbers) in India, Mongolia, and prob- 

 ably in Turkestan, in small numbers to central, south and west 

 Europe. Casual Egypt. 



ANSER FABALIS* 



291. Anser fabalis fabalis (Lath.)— THE BEAN-GOOSE. 



Anas Fabalis Latham, Gen. Syn., Suppl., 1, p. 297 (1787 — Great Britain) . 

 Anser segetum (Gmelin), Yarrell, iv, p. 265 ; Saunders, p. 401. 



Description (Plate 5). — Adult male and female. — Winter. — Fore- 

 head and crown dark ash-brown, feathers with black-brown bases ; 

 in some a small white patch on fore-head, in some merely a few white 

 feathers ; nape buff-brown ; upper-mantle ash-brown, feathers 

 tipped buff -brown ; mantle and scapulars very dark ash-brown 

 with lighter brown edges shading to brownish-white at tip, in some 

 feathers with grey bloom ; back, rump and some upper tail-coverts 

 black-brown, feathers edged sepia (upper tail-coverts sometimes 

 more or less tipped white) ; sides of back and rump, and rest of 

 upper tail-coverts white (central upper tail-coverts sometimes 

 suffused dark grey) ; lores and cheeks dark ash-brown, lores in some 

 black-brown ; chin, throat, rest of neck and upper-breast dark ash- 

 brown, feathers with buff-brown tinge, those of upper-breast with 

 broad light buff tips (chin in some with white spot) ; feathers of 

 sides of body and flanks as mantle, but more broadly tipped whitish, 

 some flank-feathers narrowly bordered white on outer web and 

 tipped same ; thighs ash-brown, feathers with light buff tips ; rest 

 of breast and part of belly very pale ash-brown, feathers shading 

 to white or buff -white at tip (in fresh plumage feathers of breast and 

 belly with faint terminal dusky-brown lines) ; lower-belly, vent and 

 under tail-coverts white (in some under-parts with an odd black 

 feather) ; axillaries and under wing-coverts dark ash-brown ; tail- 

 feathers dark ash-brown, tipped and narrowly bordered white, outer 

 ones with inner webs paler ; primaries brown-black with white 

 shafts (brown towards tip), outer primaries usually with grey bloom 

 on basal two-thirds ; secondaries brown-black, outer webs and tips 

 usually narrowly bordered white, innermost with outer webs more 

 or less dark ash-brown shading to lighter at border and bordered 

 white ; primary-coverts and bastard-wing dark ash-grey ; greater 

 and lower median coverts dark ash-brown broadly tipped white (in 

 some with grey bloom), rest of median coverts same with narrow 

 light brown or whitish tips ; rest of wing-coverts ash-brown with 

 dark grey bloom and lighter brown tips (in some lesser coverts 

 sepia similarly edged). This plumage is acquired by complete 



* Many authors have separated two supposed species : Anser fabalis 

 (= segetum Gm.) and Anser arvensis, and Mr. F. W. Frohawk stated that 

 A. arvensis is the usual form (Field, Oct. 4, 1902, p. 605), but the two supposed 

 species are only variations of A. fabalis. 



