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Originally Posted by morpheus  Another thing, are there any known feral breeding ross's geese anywhere in the uk? |
I've not heard of any feral populations of Ross's Geese in UK, though there are feral groups of Snow Geese. The latter species also turns up as genuine vagrants, arriving with carrier species from Greenland/ Iceland such as Pinkfeet, Greylag + Greenland Whitefront.
Ross's Geese are popular collection birds, so escapes are not uncommon ,as with many other waterfowl, such as Black Swans which frequently turn up in the wild. Strictly speaking it shouldn't happen as the wings of non-native waterfowl should be pinioned to prevent them escaping under the Wildlife + Countryside Act. This is to prevent problems such as the current cull of Ruddy Ducks where non-native species cause problems.
As I mentioned above a Ross's Goose turned up in 2 consecutive winters in Norfolk + was considered wild by many. It wasn't accepted because of the escape possibility, though with an expanding US population has to be a potential vagrant.