Psilos
Wildfowl Photography |
Hawaiian Goose (Branta sandvicensis) |
During the 1940's the Hawaiian Goose,
native to the Hawaiian Islands faced possible extinction. Their numbers
crashed as low as 50 birds as a direct result of predation from introduced
species such as cats, rats and mongooses. This shy little goose is the
state bird of Hawaii and its native name is Nene. Its natural habitat
can be found on scrubland, grassland, golf courses and sparsely vegetated
slopes where it feeds on a varied vegetarian diet. |
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Nowadays though this little goose represents a success story as captive breeding by the Wetland Wildfowl trust proved successful. Eventually, these birds were reintroduced back to the islands and were given better protection from predators. Now there are over 800 birds living in the wild. These birds can be found at most of the WWT reserves. They are very tame and can readily be hand fed. |
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The nest of the Nene is down filled and usually concealed under low bushes. They lay 2 - 5 eggs and incubation lasts for 30 days. Goslings are flightless for about 11 to 14 weeks after hatching. In the wild family groups begin flocking soon after the young are able to fly and remain in the breeding grounds for about a month. After this the flocks disperse and wander further afield to search for food. February 2005 I was quite surprised to find a female laying on a nest. (photo below) As I stood and watched the male rushed forward and showed his alarm at my presence. With all this mild weather we are having I hope they dont lay eggs too soon. |
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March 2005 - Well thankfully the mild weather
has continued and the female has produced three goslings. Here are two
of those same goslings at about 10 days old. |
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