Appearance: - The Ruddy-headed Goose has a chestnut-brown head and upper neck, dark-brown eyes with white eye-ring, a short black beak, the breast and underparts are buff with black barring, the upperparts are grey, the tail and rump are black, the wings are white with black primaries, brown tertials, and a metalic green speculum, the legs and feet are orange. Both sexes are alike.
Notes: - The Ruddy-headed Goose is a large stocky South American Sheldgoose. They remain numerous in the Falkland Islands but the Tierra del Fuego population has decreased to a few hundred birds because of livestock farming and predation from the Gray Fox which was introduced in the 1950s to control rabbits. This species is listed as 'Least Concern' by the IUCN.
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Ruddy-headed Goose - May 2017
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