FUN from Russia

Reading colour-ringed geese isn't fun most of the time. You get cold fingers, bubbling eyes and have to check necks of boring species. Or......

This afternoon I did my quick check of the polders near Bleskensgraaf, Zuid-Holland to watch some geese. A flock of over 3000 birds was present near Oud-Ablas along the road, so I parked my car to observe them. After some scanning, I found the first black neckband on a White-fronted albifrons. After some minutes of perceiving, it turned out to be FUN! The funniest code I have ever read. Other comic combinations I have seen before are PUP and CAR. I am still looking for my initials: AJJ. FUN came all the way from Kolguev, Russia and was ringed there in 2008 as a female. (A nice website about the expeditions to this island is blessgans.de) She was the twelfth albifrons I have read this autumn yet.

One species is always fun to see: the Red-breasted Goose. Colourful, delicate and easy to find. Some more fun of this afternoon:

Red-breasted Goose / Branta ruficollis - Bleskensgraaf - December 8th

And another adult from last week, because they are so nice:

Red-breasted Goose / Branta ruficollis - Strijen - December 1st