Image from the Biodiversity Heritage Library.
Contributed by Museum of Vertebrate Zoology, University of California, Berkeley.
| www.biodiversitylibrary.org
Transcription
Chen hyperboreus.
March 19, 1909.
Of the three adult Snow Geese which I
have, the one which I first obtained, in January,
has considerable rusty orange on its face and
on the feathers on the tibiae. The second
one obtained has a little on its face, while
one received yesterday has none whatever on
it. This last bird, however, at one time had
a broken wing which has knitted, and it,
may be that it has lived a long while in
Medced County, from whence it came, thus
not being able to have accompanied the
birds to and from their northern homes
where they apparently get this stain on their
feathers.
Of the two young birds, the one first
obtained in January appears to me to have
lost some of the rusty orange color from its
face. This is doubtless due to the fact that
it is a moulting bird; it is continually losing
its gray feathers in exchange for white ones.
The second young one which was obtained re-
cently was had little or no orange color
on its face. It also seems to be getting
white feathers in place of gray ones. I find
a good many gray feathers from these
birds about the aviary.