Brent Goose

Branta bernicla

Family:

Ducks, geese and swans

Length:

56cm to 61cm

Wingspan:

110cm to 120cm

Weight:

130g to 160g

About the Brent Goose

Small for a goose (comparable to the size of a mallard), the brent goose is mainly dark with grey, white and brown. They have a black neck and head, with a pale or dark belly - this depends on the race. Adults have a small white patch on their necks.

They are often seen flying spaced out within their flocks along the coast, unlike grey geese who fly in a tight formation.

What does a Brent Goose eat?

Their diets mainly consist of vegetation, especially eel-grass.

Other birds in the Ducks, geese and swans family

Wigeon

Whooper Swan

This large bird arrives on our shores from Iceland to overwinter in late September, returning northwards to breed from mid March onwards.

White-Fronted Goose

Velvet Scoter

Tundra Bean Goose

Tufted Duck

A type of diving duck, distinguished by its mohican-like feathers at back of head.

Teal

Taiga Bean Goose

Snow Goose

Smew

Shoveler

Shelduck

Scaup

Ruddy Duck

Red-Crested Pochard

Red-Breasted Merganser

Pochard

During the winter the population of this rare resident breeding duck increases by 55 times to that of the summer, with the influx of many thousands of others overwintering, having arrived from Russia and Eastern Europe.

Pintail

Pink-Footed Goose

Mute Swan

Mandarin Duck

A native of Japan and China, the mandarin duck was first introduced into the UK in the 18th century and started populations in the wild in the 1930’s following escapes from captivity. The UK population is estimated to be in the region of 7,000 birds.

Mallard

Long-Tailed Duck

Greylag Goose

Merganser

Widespread throughout the northern hemisphere, the common merganser is the largest of the saw billed fish eating ducks. There are three sub-species with the Eurasian variant frequently known as the Goosander.

Goldeneye

Garganey

Gadwall

Eider

Egyptian Goose

Regarded as being sacred by early Egyptians, this native goose of the African continent was introduced into Europe and elsewhere as an ornamental wildfowl species in the late seventeenth and eighteenth century.

Common Scoter

The word scoter is often used to define northern sea ducks. There are six different species of scoter, all of which are monotypic and three of which are confined to North America. The Common Scoter like the Velvet Scoter can only be found in Europe and Asia whilst the Stejneger’s Scoter is a native of Asia alone.

Canada Goose

Bewick's Swan

Winter visitors to the UK, formerly considered a full species, but now considered a sub-species of the Tundra Swan.

Barnacle Goose

A highly sociable and unmistakable member of the goose family, often seen and heard flying in long, noisy packs and lines.