Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose

Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose hybrid, Malmoe (Sweden), 12th July 2008 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson
(photo ID: 1064)

This interesting bird seems to tick all the boxes for Bar-headed x Barnacle.  It was among a flock of about 100 Barnacle Geese and Carl Gunnar describes it as being the same size as Barnacle Goose.

Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose hybrid (with Barnacle Geese), Malmoe (Sweden), 9th July 2008 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson 
(photo IDs: 1507-1512)

Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose hybrid, Malmoe (Sweden), 12th July 2008 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson 
(photo ID: 1063)

Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose hybrid, Malmoe (Sweden), 1st August 2008 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson
(photo ID: 1065)

Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose hybrid, Malmoe (Sweden), 11th July 2008 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson 
(photo ID: 1062)

As with many other Anser x Branta hybrids, this one showed dusky under tail-coverts:

Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose hybrid, Malmoe (Sweden), 9th-12th July 2008 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson 
(photo IDs: 1038-1040)

I am not completely sure about the ID of the next bird but think this is the most likely solution.  It reminded me a little of some hybrids involving Emperor Goose but on balance I think Bar-headed x Barnacle is a better fit.  Comments are welcome, as always.

probable Bar-headed Goose x Barnacle Goose, near St Albans (Hertfordshire, UK), 12th March 2017 - copyright Alan Winn

(photo IDs: 3153-3157)

Bar-headed Goose Anser indicus 
Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis

Bar-headed Goose x Canda Goose

probable Bar-headed Goose x Canada Goose hybrid, Hyde Park (Greater London, UK), 31st May 2016 - copyright Ralph Hancock

(photo ID: 2176)

The above bird isn't showing its legs but Ralph describes it as having dull yellow feet.  It looks a lot like some Greylag x Canada hybrids and the two can easily be confused.  It was Joern who picked up on this one and noted the yellowish ground colour to the bill as well as in Ralph's description of the feet.  The bill is also rather slender for Greylag x Canada and you can see a trace of the Bar-headed pattern on the head.  This hybrid typically shows a silvery tone to the scapulars, more than most Greylag x Canada hybrids - that is hard to see in this photo (though I think I can just make it out) but it is dependent on light to some extent and does not always appear obvious.

Joern's excellent illustration of another bird show the intermediate characters clearly and his notes confirm it was intermediate in size, neck length and body colour.  Its wings were lighter than the back and the breast was brownish, unlike either parent species.

Bar-headed Goose x Canada Goose hybrid (centre, with Bar-headed Goose left and Canada Goose right), Rieselfelder Münster (Germany), 28th July 2003 - copyright Joern Lehmhus

(illus. ID: 0717)

Bar-headed Goose Anser indicus
Canada Goose Branta candensis

Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose

Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose hybrid, Åhus (Sweden), 24th January 2012 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson

(photo ID: 0930)

It's interesting to compare this bird from Sweden, bearing a striking resemblence to Bar-headed Goose, to the birds from Germany with entirely white head and neck.  Although the Swedish bird recalls Bar-headed Goose note the intermediate bill colour (including the nail), small grinning patch and white flecks in the crown. 

Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose hybrid (same bird as in photo ID 0930 above), Åhus (Sweden), 24th January 2012 - copyright Carl Gunnar Gustavsson

(photo ID: 0931)

This hybrid is fertile and among the flock in Germany some birds appear to be backcrossed with Bar-headed Goose while one has produced young with a Swan Goose - see the Swan Goose x (Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose) trigen page.

The followng birds may not all be F1 hybrids.

Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose hybrids, Schrevenpark, Kiel (Germany), 16th August 2011 - copyright Joern Lehmhus

(photo IDs: 0680-0689)

The following birds were in the same flock.  The front bird is the hybrid, the left hand bird is a Bar-headed Goose with which it was paired and the third bird may be a backcrossed hybrid (Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose) x Bar-headed Goose.  Joern describes how whilst
It looked superficially like a Bar-headed Goose in head and neck pattern, it showed some small white spots in the dark nape, its body was slightly darker grey than all of the Bar-headed Geese in the park (similar to the hybrids' grey) and the tertials and greater coverts were darker and slightly more pointed with broader white edges than in the other Bar-headed Geese in the park. In addition the leg colour of the possible backcross seemed intermediate between the Bar-headed Goose in the photo and the Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose hybrid, but this is difficult to see on the photos.

Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose hybrid, Bar-headed Goose and possible backcrossed (Bar-headed Goose x Snow Goose) x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, Schrevenpark, Kiel (Germany), 16th August 2011 - copyright Joern Lehmhus

(photo IDs: 0690-0691)

Bar-headed Goose Anser indicus
Snow Goose Anser caerulescens or Chen caerulescens

Greylag Goose x Bar-headed Goose

Greylag Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, "Rieselfelder" Münster (Germany), 28th July 2003 - copyright Joern Lehmhus

(plate ID: 0654)

Joern informs us that this drawing got slightly too grey in the body coloring, but shows the pattern of such a hybrid.  The bird was darker than Bar-headed Goose, but much lighter than Greylag Goose.  The legs were darker orange than the bill; the bill was more orange than the yellow orange of Bar-headed Goose but the nail was black as in Bar-headed Goose. The shape of the bill was intermediate between the two species, stronger than in Bar-headed Goose but not as massive as in Greylag.  The head pattern resembled Bar-headed Goose but was less contrasty with dirty white and dark grey-brown coloration.  There was no clear pale band running down the sides of the neck.

 
Greylag Goose Anser anser
Bar-headed Goose Anser indicus

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid (with Feral Pigeons), St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 15th July 2013 - copyright Dave Appleton

(photo ID: 0004)

This individual has been present in this park for a few years.  The silvery wash to the plumage and yellowy tone of the bill are typical features of Bar-headed Goose hybrids.

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid (with Feral Pigeons), St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 15th July 2013 - copyright Dave Appleton

(photo IDs: 0005-0009)

Joern has asked what taxon of White-fronted Goose might be involved here.  He thinks it looks a bit large-billed so wonders if Greenland White-fronted Goose (flavirostris) might be involved.  Does anyone know the answer?  As there's a resident flock of Bar-headed Geese here I guess it's likely to have hatched in the park, so maybe someone knows what White-fronted Geese have been there too?

We now have a series of photos of presumably the same bird taken over several years including when it was a gosling:

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 25th May 2006 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2690)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 29th June 2006 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2691)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 6th July 2006 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2692)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 13th July 2006 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2693)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 11th September 2006 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2694)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 19th October 2006 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2695)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 2nd March 2007 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2696)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 12th September 2013 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2697)

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 2nd September 2015 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2698)

This hybrid is fertile and has apparently produced the following backcrossed hybrid, I presume with Bar-headed Goose, of which there are several in the park.  I also presume it's in juvenile plumage here - will be interesting to see how it looks now...

(Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose) x Bar-headed Goose backcrossed hybrid, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 2nd September 2015 - copyright David Darrell-Lambert

(photo ID: 2699)

It appears that the hybrid bred with Bar-headed Goose again in 2016 producing two goslings.

Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose hybrid with Bar-headed Goose and two presumed backcrossed hybrid goslings, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 24th May 2016 - copyright Mike Tyler

(photo ID: 2993)

Mike phtoographed the goslings again five weeks later:

presumed (Greater White-fronted Goose x Bar-headed Goose) x Bar-headed Goose backcrossed hybrid goslings, St James's Park (Greater London, UK), 27th June 2016 - copyright Mike Tyler

(photo ID: 2994)

There are more photos of this family group, taken in August I think, on Twitter.

Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons

Bar-headed Goose Anser indicus