Wednesday, December 28, 2011

Bizarro Birds

Birding in Johnson Park is usually an opportunity to observe the strange forms that result from domesticating waterfowl, and Monday was no exception. The bird above looks like the product of a Canada Goose interbreeding with a domesticated goose, probably a Greylag. This goose looks a bit different from the Canada X Greylag crosses that I normally see because of its mostly white face and white belly band. Greylag still seems like the most likely candidate based on availability.

This duck is one of many Mallard domestic breeds. It looked larger and bulkier than the wild Mallards nearby.