Brent Goose

A plump bird with short black legs and a black bill, comparable in size to the Mallard and the Shelduck. Its stature is more upright than those species though, and its neck is longer. The tail is always white; the upper body, head and neck are dark though there is a distinctive small white neck patch. Careful inspection shows subtle differences in plumage patterns – these patterns can be used to identify the three races which visit Britain and Ireland. There's the Dark-bellied Brent from Siberia and Russia, and two races of Pale-bellied Brent from Greenland and Spitsbergen. The breast and belly of the dark-bellied bird is almost the same tone as its dark back, with some blurring, and the flanks are paler than in the pale-bellied race. The breasts and bellies of the Pale-bellied Brent are paler grey-brown, and the side of the neck holds a narrow strip of white feathers. This race has a tidy division between its dark breast and its pale belly. The difference in juveniles is the lack of white collar and the paler feather margins.