Hi All,
My wife and I spent Saturday afternoon looking for the Pink-footed Goose reported from the Middletown area of Orange Co. Lots of Canada Geese (+ 1 Cackling Goose) near the previous Carmelite Rd location, but no sign of the PFGO. Around 4 PM we drove to Maple Hill Park (41.443963 -74.439604), near the corner of California Ave. and Maple Ave, in Wallkill. This location is about 0.7 mi from Carmelite Rd. Almost immediately we spotted what we initially thought was the PFGO. Continued inspection of the geese in the area revealed a second individual of similar appearance. Our general impression was PFGO, but neither looked quite right. Both individuals had a dark brown head and general overall PFGO appearance. The bill of the first individual was pinkish-orange with a dark tip while that of the second was more extensively dark with limited pale pinkish-orange. The second individual had flesh colored feet while those of the first had yellowish-orange feet. The bill of both individuals appeared longer than expected for a PFGO (Bean Goose like?) and both showed a faint light ear patch (Canada Goose like?). Comparing our photographs of the two individuals to the photographs posted by Richard Fried indicates that the two Maple Hill individual are not the same as previously reported. Photographs of the Maple Hill Park birds may be found at : http://www.flickr.com/photos/awells48/ We are not sure what to call these two birds. Juvenile PFGO? Hybrid Canada x Greylag? Something else? Any insight would be appreciated!! Thanks! Alan & Della Wells Tomkins Cove, NY -- NYSbirds-L List Info: http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsWELCOME http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsRULES http://www.NortheastBirding.com/NYSbirdsSubscribeConfigurationLeave.htm ARCHIVES: 1) http://www.mail-archive.com/nysbirds-l@cornell.edu/maillist.html 2) http://www.surfbirds.com/birdingmail/Group/NYSBirds-L 3) http://birdingonthe.net/mailinglists/NYSB.html Please submit your observations to eBird: http://ebird.org/content/ebird/ --
