Goose
A goose (pl.: geese) is a
The term "goose" may refer to such bird of either sex, but when paired with "gander", refers specifically to a female one (the latter referring to a male). Young birds before fledging are called goslings.
Etymology
The word "goose" is a direct descendant of
This term also gave
True geese and their relatives
The two living
Two genera of geese are only tentatively placed in the Anserinae; they may belong to the
Geese are
Fossil record
Goose fossils have been found ranging from 10 to 12 million years ago (Middle Miocene).
Migratory patterns
Most goose species are migratory, though populations of Canada geese living near human developments may remain in a locality year-round.[8] These 'resident' geese, found primarily in the eastern United States, may migrate only short distances, or not at all, if they have adequate food supply and access to open water.[8]
Migratory geese may use several environmental cues in timing the beginning of their migration, including temperature, predation threat, and food availability.[9][10] Like all migratory birds, geese exhibit an ability to navigate using an internal compass, using a combination of innate and learned behaviors. The preferred direction of migration is heritable, and birds appear to orient themselves using Earth's magnetic field.[11] Migrations occur over the course of several weeks, and up to 85% of migration time is spent at perennial stopover sites, where individuals rest and build up fat stores for further travel.[12]
Formation
Geese, like other birds, fly in a V formation. This formation helps to conserve energy in flight, and aids in communication and monitoring of flock mates.[13][14] Using great white pelicans as a model species, researchers showed that flying in a V formation increased the aerodynamics of trailing birds, thus requiring fewer wing flaps to stay aloft and lowering individuals' heartrates.[15] Leading geese switch positions on longer flights to allow for multiple individuals to gain benefits from the less energy-intensive trailing positions; in family groups, parental birds almost always lead.[16][17]
Other birds called "geese"
Some mainly
- The Orinoco goose (Neochen jubata)
- The Egyptian goose (Alopochen aegyptiaca)
- The South American sheldgeesein the genus Chloephaga
- The prehistoric Malagasy sheldgoose(Centrornis majori)
Others:
- The Plectropterinae.
- The blue-winged goose (Cyanochen cyanopterus) and the Cape Barren goose (Cereopsis novaehollandiae) have disputed affinities. They belong to separate ancient lineages that may ally either to the Tadorninae, the Anserinae, or closer to the dabbling ducks (Anatinae).
- The three species of small waterfowl in the genus Nettapusnamed "pygmy geese"; they seem to represent another ancient lineage, with possible affinities to the Cape Barren goose or the spur-winged goose.
- The maned goose, also known as the maned duck or Australian wood duck (Chenonetta jubata)
- A genus of prehistorically
- The magpie goose (Anseranas semipalmata) is the only living species in the family Anseranatidae.
- The northern gannet (Morus bassanus), a seabird, is also known as the "solan goose", although it is unrelated to the true geese, or any other Anseriformes for that matter.[19][20]
In popular culture
Sayings and phrases that reference geese
- To "have a gander" is to look at something.
- "What's good sauce for the goose is good sauce for the gander" or "What's good for the goose is good for the gander" means that what is an appropriate treatment for one person is equally appropriate for someone else. This statement supporting equality is frequently used in the context of sex and gender, because a goose is female and a gander is male.[21]
- Saying that someone's "goose is cooked" means that they are about to be punished.[21]
- The common phrase "silly goose" is used when referring to someone who is acting particularly silly.[21]
- "Killing the goose that lays the golden eggs", derived from Aesop's Fables, is a saying referring to a greed-motivated action that destroys or otherwise renders useless a favourable situation that would have provided benefits over time.[21]
- "A wild goose chase" is a useless, futile waste of time and effort. It is derived from a 16th-century horse racing event.[21]
- A raised, rounded area of swelling (typically a hematoma) caused by an impact injury is sometimes metaphorically called a "goose egg", especially if it occurs on the head.[22]
Geese as characters in cultural works
- Mother Goose is a fictitious children's storybook author associated with several collections of fairy tales and nursery rhymes translated into English during the 18th century.[23]
- Gänsewein (German, lit. 'Goose wine') is a playful term for plain drinking water, first documented the Podagrammisch Trostbüchlein by Johann Fischart (1577).[24]
- Popular indie game Untitled Goose Game released in 2019 chronicles the activities of an ornery goose in an English village.
- In the late 18th century poem, The Goose and the Common, geese serve to illustrate the social and economic issues cased by the enclosure of common land.[25]
"Gray Goose Laws" in Iceland
The oldest collection of Medieval Icelandic laws is known as "Grágás"; i.e., the Gray Goose Laws. Various etymologies were offered for that name:
- The fact that the laws were written with a goose quill;
- The fact that the laws were bound in goose skin;
- Because of the age of the laws — it was then believed that geese lived longer than other birds.[26][27][28]
Gallery
-
Canada goose gosling
-
Canada geese in flight, Great Meadows Wildlife Sanctuary
-
Goose breastbone, the colour of the bones after cooking was used to predict how cold winter would be in Lincolnshire folkloric traditions (North Lincolnshire Museum)
See also
- Angel wing, a disease common in geese
- Domestic goose, which includes cooking and folklore
- Flying geese paradigm
- List of Anseriformes by population
- List of goose breeds
- Roast goose
- Waterfowl
- Wildfowl
- Untitled Goose Game, a video game centering around a goose that takes place in a middle-class village in England.
References
- doi:10.1016/j.ympev.2016.05.021
- ^ ISBN 0-517-414252.
- ^ "AskOxford: G". Collective Terms for Groups of Animals. Oxford, United Kingdom: Oxford University Press. Archived from the original on 20 October 2008. Retrieved 19 September 2011.
- ISBN 0-521-55967-7.
- S2CID 34973918.
- ^ "Canada Goose". National Geographic. 10 May 2011. Archived from the original on May 2, 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
- ^ Yirka, Bob (2017). "Fossils from ancient extinct giant flightless goose suggests it was a fighter". phys.org. Retrieved 21 November 2020.
- ^ a b Handwerk, Brian (16 December 2020). "Do Canada geese still fly south for winter? Yes, but it's complicated". National Geographic. Retrieved 17 March 2024.
- .
- PMID 20614027.
- PMID 28289837.
- .
- ^ "Why do geese fly in a V?". Library of Congress. Retrieved 2021-12-08.
- ^ Yong, Ed (2014-01-15). "Birds That Fly in a V Formation Use An Amazing Trick". National Geographic. Archived from the original on February 22, 2021. Retrieved 2024-03-19.
- ^ Weimerskirch, Henri; Martin, Julien; Clerquin, Yannick; Alexandre, Peggy; Jiraskova, Sarka (2001). "Energy Saving in Flight Formation". Nature. 413: 697–698.
- ^ Mirzaeinia, A.; Heppner, F.; Hassanalian, M. (2020). "An analytical study on leader and follower switching in V-shaped Canada Goose flocks for energy management purposes". Swarm Intelligence. 14: 117–141.
- ^ Koelzch, A.; Flack, A.; Mueskens, G.J.D.M.; Kruckenberg, H.; Glazov, P.; Wikelski, M. (2020). "Goose parents lead migration V". Journal of Avian Biology. 51 (3).
- JSTOR 1364861.
- ISBN 978-1-4008-6596-3.
- ^ "Morus bassanus (Linnaeus, 1758)". www.gbif.org. Retrieved 2023-12-28.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-61059-399-1.
- .
- ^ Tsurumi, Ryoji (1990). "The Development of Mother Goose in Britain in the Nineteenth Century". Folklore. 101 (1): 28–35 – via JSTOR.
- ^ Goose wine - Do geese live in Germany like God in France?, Birkner's Beverage World, July 25, 2022
- ISSN 1556-5068.
- ^ Boulhosa, Patricia Press. “The Law of Óláfr inn Helgi.” In Icelanders and the Kings of Norway: Mediaeval Sagas and Legal Texts. Leiden, Netherlands: Brill, 2005.
- ^ Byock, Jesse L., Medieval Iceland: Society, Sagas, and Power, Berkeley: University of California, 1990
- ^ Byock, Jesse L. "Grágás: The 'Grey Goose' Law in Viking Age Iceland London: Penguin, 2001.
Further reading
- Carboneras, Carles (1992). "Family Anatidae (Ducks, Geese and Swans)". In del Hoyo, Josep; Elliott, Andrew; Sargatal, Jordi (eds.). ISBN 84-87334-10-5.
- Terres, John K.; ISBN 0-517-03288-0.
External links
- Anatidae media on the Internet Bird Collection