Greylag Geese staging and wintering in France 33
©Wildfowl & Wetlands Trust
Wildfowl
(2013) 63: 24–39
from Södermanland at Lac du Der (Fig. 6).
The same applies to birds from the
Netherlands seen in France. In southwest
France,
observations
are
clearly
concentrated along Atlantic coasts.
Recoveries of ringed birds show a similar
distribution pattern in France (Fig. 5).
Few Nordic Greylag Geese, with the
exception of the birds from Södermanland
(see below) were found in France before
November and after March, although a
small number were sighted there in October
and April (Fig. 7a,b). Those from the main
marking areas in Norway and Sweden
showed a typical bimodal occurrence in
France, with most sightings made during
autumn migration (November–December)
and spring migration (February–early
March), indicating that these birds mostly
cross the country on their way to and from
more southern wintering grounds on the
Iberian Peninsula (Fig. 7a,b). There were
some differences between the arrival
patterns of Greylag Geese from Norway
and south Sweden in France during autumn;
geese from south Sweden were seen mainly
in November (Fig. 7a), whereas those from
Norway were sighted mostly in December,
although a few had arrived in November
(Fig. 7b). The spring peak for birds from
both countries was in February.
A large proportion of the Greylag Geese
seen in France (65% of 138 from south
Sweden and 77% of 181 from Norway) were
also seen at wintering sites in Spain in the
same winter (Figs. 7a,b, Fig. 8). For most
months the numbers seen in France but not
seen in Spain was relatively small, with the
exception of December birds from Norway,
probably due to France being a staging area
during migration. Of 38 Greylags from
southwest Sweden re-sighted in both France
and Spain within the same season (Fig. 8), 10
were seen in France during autumn migration
in early November, and 28 seen in France
during spring migration in February and early
March. No birds were identified in France in
both autumn and spring. One individual seen
in Spain in late December was recorded back
in France during mid-January and was seen
there until mid-February.
For
the
Greylag
Geese
from
Södermanland, the Lac du Der (and
neighbouring areas) is a major wintering
area. There the birds mainly arrive in
October and leave in March, with numbers
in November–February being rather stable
(Fig. 9).
Discussion
When the neck-banding studies of Greylag
Geese in Europe commenced, France was
mainly a country through which large
numbers of Greylag Geese migrated in
autumn and spring, with most individuals
just passing or staging for short periods
within the country (Andersson
et al
. 2001;
Nilsson
et al
. 1999). Assessment of re-
sightings data, presented here, indicate that
the majority of the Greylag Geese passing
through France come from the Nordic
countries. Some additional birds originate
from the Netherlands, but most Greylags
breeding in the Netherlands are generally
sedentary or show only limited local
movements (Voslamber
et al
. 2010). Nordic-
breeding geese also stage in the Netherlands,
before continuing on the second or third
leg of their journey to wintering sites in
Spain.
