Today I chased down a report of a life bird for me--Barnacle Goose. More and more often these Geese seem to be wandering over to the east coast, though they typically inhabit Greenland and parts of Europe I believe. Some seem to be escapes, but the increasing number definitely means that wild ones are here.
After taking the NYC subway for about 45 minutes or so, I arrived in the Bronx and a big park area call Van Cortlandt Park. The Barnacle Goose had been reported in a large flock of Canada Geese. It wasn't too hard to find the big flock of geese, but after several scans, I was getting worried that the Barnacle Goose had departed.
Finally, I found it out in the middle of the geese! Here are some (not too great) photos:
As you can see, the Barnacle is a pretty distinct bird. Still, finding any goose in the midst of hundreds of others can take time, since it may have its head down, be behind another goose, etc.
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