snow goose | Birds of New England.com

Photo by Chris Bosak
Snow geese at Cayuga State Park in Seneca Falls, N.Y., fall 2019.

You didn’t think I was going to post one snow goose photo and leave it at that, did you? Here’s the link to my previous post on snow geese in which I mention that New England, for the most part, misses out (but not by much) on the massive snow goose migrations.

I found these snow geese near the beach at Cayuga State Park in Seneca Falls, N.Y., during a camping trip with three long-time friends. Yes, it’s not New England, but it’s only a few hours drive away and the area gets so many snow geese that people actually complain about them. (At least the one wine pourer did.) It just goes to show the narrow margin by which New England misses the spectacle.

Here are some more shots of the geese. There were four geese there when we visited in late September. In a few weeks, the mowed corn fields will be filled with these beautiful birds.

Snow goose, Seneca Falls, N.Y., fall 2019.

New England is not known for its snow geese. In fact, most snow geese that I have seen in New England are “stray” individuals hanging out with Canada geese. The massive flocks seem to be reserved for nearby states such as Delaware, Maryland, Pennsylvania and New York. There are, however, pockets of New England that host large numbers of snow geese for relatively short periods of time. Northern Vermont comes to mind for such a spectacle.

Snow geese are one of the world’s most numerous species. Most snow geese are white (hence the name) but young ones are grayish and there is a blue morph variety. Here’s an interesting tidbit from allaboutbirds.org: “In wintering and migrating flocks that are feeding, lookouts keep an eye out for eagles and other predators. Upon sighting a threat they call out to the rest of the flock, which may take flight.”

Here’s a great article on the snow goose migration from www.pennlive.com

Happy fall migration.