Greater White-fronted Goose
From Natural History of Southeast Alaska

Greater White-fronted Goose: for more photos, see Sitka Nature Photo Gallery for Anser albifrons
Locale | Sp | Su | F | W | Br |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
SE Alaska (edit) | FC | VR | U | VR | - |
Yakutat (edit) | C | - | C | - | - |
Skagway (edit) | + | - | - | - | - |
Haines (edit) | U | + | U | + | - |
Glacier Bay (edit) | FC | VR | FC | VR | - |
Juneau (edit) | FC | U | O | VR | - |
Sitka (edit) | U | + | U | VR | - |
Stikine (edit) | |||||
S Outer Islands (edit) | |||||
Ketchikan (edit) | C | VR | U | - | - |
Offshore (edit) |
When not flying overhead, found along salt water beaches, meadows, and lakes.
Observations are primarily of subspecies A. a. frontalis, likely breeding in western and northwestern Alaska. There are occasional sightings of the larger and darker subspecies A. a. gambeli (also known as Tule Goose), which breeds around Cook Inlet in southcentral Alaska.
- Typical migration window for spring and fall?
- Northern Lynn Canal outside typical flyway?
- More likely to fly over without stopping in the fall? (cf. BoW account)
- High counts?
Local Notes
- Glacier Bay/Greater White-fronted Goose: (edit)
- Haines/Greater White-fronted Goose: (edit)
- Juneau/Greater White-fronted Goose: (edit)
- Ketchikan/Greater White-fronted Goose: (edit)
- Sitka/Greater White-fronted Goose: Typically seen only during Spring and Fall migration. In spring, most often at most a few dozen birds are seen on the ground briefly over the period. Occasionally there are hundreds that spend more time. In the fall, non flyover sightings are less common and typically of fewer individuals, though some are present for days or weeks before moving on. Observations of this species through the winter are unusual. Accidental in summer, spring migrants are last observed the last week of May, with the earliest fall observations in late August. (edit)
- Skagway/Greater White-fronted Goose: (edit)
- Yakutat/Greater White-fronted Goose: (edit)
References
Weblinks
- Search Arctos Database for Greater White-fronted Goose (Southeast only)
- Search Arctos Database for Greater White-fronted Goose (entire database)
- Encyclopedia of Life search for Anser albifrons
- iNaturalist Observations for Anser albifrons in Southeast Alaska
Other References