The Barnacle Goose (Branta leucopsis) is a compact, short-necked goose in bold black, white and grey, 58–70 cm long with a wingspan of roughly 132–145 cm and a weight of 1.3–2.2 kg. Its face is pure white against a black crown, neck and breast, while the upperparts are blue-grey barred in black and white and the belly is light greyish-white; bill and legs are black, and the sexes look alike. Large flocks fly in loose, irregular formations with a light, round-winged look, and their call — a loud, shrill, dog-like "gagg-gagg" or "kaw" — becomes an intense, insistent chorus wherever big numbers gather.
Originally an exclusively Arctic breeder on Svalbard, Greenland and in northwest Russia, the Barnacle Goose established itself as a Swedish breeding bird from 1971, first around Gotland, and the population has since grown strongly and spread through the Baltic archipelagos, including the Stockholm archipelago; the species is classed as Least Concern (LC). It nests colonially, preferring small, predator-free islands and skerries but also using cliff ledges, low shorelines and increasingly rooftops in built-up areas, where the female lays 3–5 eggs in a shallow, down-lined scrape and incubates them 24–25 days while the gander stands guard; broods from different pairs are often combined into large "creche flocks" led by just a few adults. The diet is entirely plant-based — grass, herbs, shore plants and shoots — grazed on short coastal meadows, pastures and fields, which can bring large flocks into conflict with farming. As a short-distance migrant, most of the wider European population winters along the North Sea coast, chiefly in the Netherlands, while huge numbers of Arctic-breeding birds pass through Sweden on migration each spring and autumn.
Read about this species in Swedish →