WILD FOWL 
It is asserted that another form, known as the yellow -billed bean-goose 
{Anser arvensis) [cf. Alpheraky, “Geese of Europe,” p. 94, pis. ix and xxii 
(1905)] occurs, together with A. fabalis^ and is far more common in 
Western Europe, including the British Isles, than the latter species. At 
present, however, the distribution of the two forms, if there really are 
two, is so involved and shrouded in uncertainty that it is outside the scope 
of the present work to deal with this interesting matter. A. arvensis is 
said to be characterized by having the upper mandible orange -yellow 
with the exception of the nail and a black band extending from the forehead 
down the ridge of the culmen as far as the nostrils, whereas in A. fabalis 
the basal three -fifths of the upper mandible and the nail are black with 
an orange -yellow subterminal band. 
It is a subject of great interest to naturalists and worthy of the special 
attention of sportsmen, who could greatly assist in elucidating the question 
by forwarding examples of bean-geese for examination to the Natural 
History Museum, Cromwell Road, London. 
Distribution in the British Isles . — The bean-goose is a winter -visitor 
to the British Isles, but is much less abundant than some of its allies, 
and is commoner on the west coast of Great Britain than it is on the 
east. It is scarce in the north of Scotland and some of the inner islands, 
almost unknown in the Outer Hebrides, while in the Orkney and Shetland 
Islands its occurrence requires confirmation. In Ireland it is often numer- 
ous in the midland and western counties, especially in severe winters, 
but rare in the south. 
Nest and eggs . — The nest of the bean-goose is a slight hollow in the 
ground lined with dead grass and moss, and thickly lined with light grey 
down after the eggs have been laid in May or June. The eggs vary in 
number from three to five, but no doubt larger clutches are sometimes 
found. They are creamy- white, and average about 3 ’2 by 2 *2 inches. 
Adult birds weigh from 7\ to 8 lbs. 
Allied forms . — The Siberian bean-goose (Anser serrirostris) is charac- 
terized chiefly by its massive bill — ^2 *4 to 2 '7 inches in length. It occurs 
in North and North-east Asia from the Taimyr Peninsula eastwards, 
wintering in Corea, China and Japan. 
Yet another supposed form of the thick -billed bean-goose is Anser mentalis, 
from North Manchuria, the Commander Islands and Japan. It appears 
to be a very large form close to A. serrirostris^ but the white patch on 
chin of the type specimen from Japan, according to Alpheraky, is not a 
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