Goose Management in Scotland

Our most abundant goose visits between September and May from breeding grounds in Iceland and eastern Greenland. About 250,000 birds spend the winter here, which is roughly half the global population of the species, although higher numbers migrate through Scotland in autumn and spring on their way to and from wintering areas in northern and eastern England. Pink-feet are mostly found in eastern and southern Scotland and feed primarily on cereal stubble fields in the early part of the winter, switching to grass in late winter and spring. 

This ancestor of the domestic goose has a complex history in Scotland. The indigenous native breeding population was reduced to a relict population in the Western Isles that numbered only a few hundred pairs fifty years ago. This population has since increased dramatically while at the same time, breeding populations of Greylags that were re-introduced to other parts of Scotland for hunting have also increased and the two populations have now merged with around 60,000 birds now thought to be resident year-round throughout the country. An additional 65,000 birds from the separate Icelandic breeding population visit in winter. The Icelandic birds used to migrate to southern Scotland, but their distribution has gradually shifted north in response to milder winters and improved feeding conditions and is now concentrated in Caithness and Orkney. 

Two separate populations of this species visit Scotland in the winter. About 56,000 birds come from eastern Greenland and Iceland to the Western Isles and Orkney with about half of this population wintering on Islay. Overall, about 75% of the Greenland population winter in Scotland, with the remainder wintering in Ireland. About 30,000 birds come from Svalbard in Norway to the Solway Firth and represents almost all the Svalbard population (a small proportion winter on the east coast of Scotland and Northumberland). A small number of feral Barnacle geese, presumed to have escaped from wildfowl collections, have bred in some parts of Scotland. 

Sometimes considered a separate species, this distinct subspecies of White-fronted Goose migrates from western Greenland to spend the winter in Britain and Ireland. Around 11,000 birds (half of the global population of this sub-species) winter in Scotland and about half of those are on Islay with the remainder scattered in small flocks throughout western and northern parts of the country.  

Unlike all the other species found in Scotland, this is not a native species, having been introduced to Britain from North America over 200 years ago as ornamental waterfowl. Feral breeding populations in Scotland are present year-round in southern and central parts of the country but have seen increases in recent years and are now thought to number over 3000 birds. For many years around 1000 Canada Geese from England have migrated north in June to moult on the Beauly Firth and inner Moray Firth, returning south in September. There are also very rare records of wild Canada geese from North America in Scotland. These are usually noticed because they come from smaller, darker coloured subspecies than the resident feral population. 

Very similar in appearance to the Pink-footed goose, but slightly larger and longer-necked and with orange feet. A flock of about 200 birds visits a small area between Cumbernauld and Falkirk from September to February each year, from a breeding population in central Sweden. Despite the low numbers, this still represents about 15% of the western sub-population of this species, which mostly winters in Denmark. Larger sub-populations exist further east in Scandinavia and Russia. 

Our smallest goose, little larger than a mallard, is found almost exclusively in coastal habitats such as mudflats. Only a few hundred spend the winter here, with birds from Arctic Canada visiting Ayrshire, Galloway and Islay, while birds from Svalbard visit the inner Moray Firth and the Eden estuary in Fife. These represent a small proportion of each of the two populations, which mostly winter in Northern Ireland and Northumberland respectively. During spring and autumn migration, birds may be seen elsewhere along the west and east coasts. 

Several other species may occur irregularly in small numbers in Scotland, often mixed in with flocks of the more common species. The most frequently occurring are European White-fronted Geese, Tundra Bean Geese and Snow Geese. A small feral Snow Goose population became established on Mull and Coll in the 1950s but has now dwindled to single figures and is unlikely to persist. Other species may occur as escapes from waterfowl collections, of which the Bar-headed goose has the most potential to establish feral breeding populations.