I received a call from my friend and bird buddy Chris Nelson yesterday afternoon... at around 5:30PM telling me that there was a large flock of Brant Geese on the shore in the back of his house along Shaw Cove in Gig Harbor. I told him I would be right over and me another friend of mine who was celebrating Easter with us jumped in my car and headed over to his house. We made it in less than 10 minutes and I am glad we made the trip. I was able to go down on the beach and get within 20 or so yards from the birds. This was the first time I had ever seen/photographed a Brant Goose!
Here is some information I found out on these geese from "WhatBird.com"..
Brant: Small goose, dark brown upperparts and brown-barred, pale gray underparts. Head is black; short black neck has partial white ring. Tail and vent are white. Western race, formerly known as the Black Brant, is darker. Heavy direct flight with strong wing beats. Flies in straight line formation.
Range and Habitat
Brant: Breeds in eastern Siberia and along the northern coast of Alaska and western Canada; Pacific subspecies spends winters along the west coast from British Columbia to Baja California. Preferred habitats include tundra and coastal islands in the Arctic during breeding, and salt marshes and estuaries during winter.
