104 
About the only place in settled Canada where it seems of regular occurrence in appreciable 
numbers is central Manitoba. Here flocks of a few hundreds, only a small fraction of the 
total specific numbers, however, are seen each spring. Elsewhere in Canada it is but an 
erratic straggler. The distribution and migration of this species are among the pro- 
blems of American ornithology. 
The Blue Goose in habit is so like the Snow Goose with which it often 
associates that, for a long time, it was regarded as the young of that species. 
170. Ross’s Goose, scabby-nosed goose. Chen rossi. L, 21. A small Wavey 
Goose, hardly larger than a big Mallard. 
Distinctions, Likely to be confused only with the Snow Goose. Besides its decidedly 
inferior size, Ross’s Goose lacks the black “grinning patch” of the Snow Goose, and the 
base of the bill in well-grown specimens is rugose and bluish, suggesting the popular name 
of “Scabby-nose” (Figure 141, compare with 140). 
Bill of Ross’s Goose; natural size. 
Field Marks. A very small white Goose with black wing tips. In flight it is not as 
noisy as the Snow Goose. 
Nesting. Unknown. 
Distribution. Another Goose of interesting and problematical distribution. In the 
spring it passes in large numbers through the large lakes of Mackenzie and vanishes towards 
the north. On the southward migration it comes down through the more western prairies 
and crosses the mountains of central Montana to the California coast. It occurs in British 
Columbia or Manitoba only as a straggler. 
The general similarity of this species to the Snow Goose, and its small 
size, had probably suggested its identity with the Lesser Snow Goose and 
caused that species to be regarded as the Greater, an incorrect but rather 
natural conclusion for the non-technical observer. 
171. White-fronted Goose (Including American White-fronted Goose). 
speckled-belly. Anser albijrons. L, 27. Plate XII A. A medium-sized Goose, grey- 
ish-brown, with a white patch at base of bill and speckled or irregularly black-spotted 
underparts. 
Distinctions. The greyish-brown body, brown head and neck, white forehead and 
bill patch, irregularly pied underparts, and yellow legs and feet make very distinctive 
characters for the adult. The juvenile is similar only to the young of the much rarer Blue 
Goose, but has yellow instead of pink feet and lacks the broad grinningpatch characteristic 
of that species and the Snow Goose (Figure 142, compare with 140). The irregular blotch- 
ing of black on the underparts may be almost or quite absent on young birds, but traces 
at least of the white face mark appear in most autumn birds. 
Field Marks. A dark Goose. Neck evenly brown with the body; without the cheek 
marks of the Canada Goose, but with a white patch surrounding the base of the bill. Legs 
yellow or orange. These marks can be seen on the adult at long range. The young bird 
when the usual white face patch is inconspicuous may be confused only with the juvenile 
Blue Goose which is generally too rare to be often considered. 
