BIRDS OF ICELAND : Branta bernicla, Branta hrota, Brent Goose

Branta bernicla; Brent Geese are passage migrants. They spend the winters on Ireland, the British isles and some areas of North-Western France. They breed on Greenland & North-eastern Canada. During spring and autumn they stay a while on Iceland. I saw many of these birds in spring in the south-western districts of Iceland. It is a goose-species that forages much more than any other goose species on shallow coastal seas. It is also the smallest of all Icelandic goose species and also the darkest. Quite characteristic is the narrow white band on the neck. The brent geese that pass through Iceland belong mainly to the subspecies "hrota", being the light-bellied Brent Goose. Some regard this as a specific species. Apparently darker bellied Bent geese (subspecies "bernicla") are observed occasionally amongst groups of the light-bellied brents.