Kelp Goose
| Kelp Goose | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Conservation status | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Subfamily: | Tadorninae |
| Genus: | Chloephaga |
| Species: | C. hybrida |
| Binomial name | |
| Chloephaga hybrida (Molina, 1782) |
|
| Subspecies | |
|
|
 |
This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (November 2009) |
The Kelp Goose (Spanish: Caranca or Cauquén Marino), Chloephaga hybrida, is a member of the duck, goose and swan family Anatidae. It is in the shelduck subfamily Tadorninae. It can be found in the Southern part of South America; in Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, and the Falkland Islands.
Contents |
[edit] Habitat
Kelp geese inhabit areas of southern Chile and Argentina, mainly in Patagonia, Tierra del Fuego, and the Falkland Islands. They habitat rocky coasts around their food sources.
[edit] Description
Males are a white color, with a black beak, and yellow feet. The females are dark brown, with transverse gray lines on the chest, and yellow feet.[1][2]
[edit] Behavior
Kelp geese generally have clutches of 2-7 eggs. They prefer to hide their eggs in long grass. The eggs hatch about a month later.
There are about 15,000 breeding pairs in existence.[2]
[edit] Ecology
Kelp geese are noted for only eating kelp and will migrate along the coast of South America in order to find kelp, hence the name 'kelp geese'.
[edit] Trivia
In the Falkland Islands and Argentina there are kelp geese stamps.
-
Female on East Falkland
-
A pair on East Falkland
-
Two females, one male, and two juveniles on Chiloé, Chile.
[edit] References
- ^ "Birds of the Falkland Islands: Kelp Goose". http://www.falklands.net/BirdGuideKelpGoose.shtml. Retrieved 2007-05-09.
- ^ a b "Kelp Goose". Archived from the original on 2007-05-03. http://web.archive.org/web/20070503183651/http://www.avesdechile.cl/048en.htm. Retrieved 2007-05-09.
[edit] External links
- BirdLife International (2004). Chloephaga hybrida. 2006. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. IUCN 2006. www.iucnredlist.org. Retrieved on 11 May 2006.
