Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid

Canada Goose Branta canadensis x domestic Greylag Goose Anser anser hybrid

Hybrids between Canada Goose and domestic Greylag Goose are more variable in appearance than hybrids between Canada Goose and wild or feral Greylag Goose. This is not surprising as domestic Greylags are very variable, with some resembling their wild ancestors and others looking quite different.

On this page I have only included birds which I consider likely to involve domestic Greylag Geese, not wild or feral Greylag Geese. I have a separate page for hybrids between Canada Goose and wild or feral Greylag Goose.

Some indicators that the parent Greylag might be of domestic origin include white plumage in places that white is not normally present in wild Greylag x Canada Goose hybrids, bulky structure, especially a heavy rear end, especially bright bare parts or geography (e.g. hybrids in North America where normally the only Greylag Geese are domestic ones).

Many domestic geese contain a mix of Swan Goose and Greylag Goose genes and when such mixed-species domestic geese hybridise with Canada Geese the offspring may resemble either Canada Goose x Swan Goose hybrids or Canada Goose x Greylag Goose hybrids - sometimes both in a single brood. The birds on this page resemble domestic Greylag Goose x Canada Goose hybrids, but I cannot exclude the possibility that the domestic parent had a mix of Swan Goose and Greylag Goose genes. Birds that show clearer evidence of both Swan Goose and Greylag Goose (as well as Canada Goose) in their ancestry are on a separate page: Canada Goose x (Greylag Goose x Swan Goose) trigen.

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid, Windermere (Cumbria, UK), 28th December 2016

Like domestic geese themselves, some domestic goose x Canada Goose hybrids can be predominantly white. Usually they aren't pure white but they can be quite tricky to separate from 'pure' white domestic Greylag Geese. Sometimes the neck is dark enough to indicate Canada parentage, perhaps with a contrasting pale cheek, but on some birds you need to see the tail. Typically the dark on the tail extends to the tail tip which is a give-away that Canada Goose (or at least a Branta sp.) is involved.

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid (with Canada Geese), Sevenoaks (Kent, UK), 20th December 2014

Excess white in the plumage is theoretically possible in a hybrid involving a non-domestic Greylag as such leucism can occur naturally, however it shifts the balance of probability overwhelmingly in favour of it involving a bird with domestic heritage. The extensive white behind the cheek and the white band on the body therefore pointed to the Greylag parent having some domestic ancestry, but the fact that it was in a flock of fat white domestic geese makes this all the more certain in this case.

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid, Haddiscoe (Norfolk, UK), 7th March 2017

The bird photographed in the water was in a slightly different place and a couple of hours later than the bird in the frost. I presume it was the same bird that had moved but I can't be completely sure it wasn't a different individual.

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid (with Canada Geese), Nunnery Lakes, Thetford (Norfolk, UK), 19th November 2016

THis one, at the same site on the same day, was certainly a different individual.

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid (with Canada Goose), Nunnery Lakes, Thetford (Norfolk, UK), 19th November 2016

The first of these two birds closely resembles a typical Canada Goose x Greylag Goose hybrid in its plumage, however the fat sagging rear belly points to domestic ancestry.

3x Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrids, Wissington fishing ponds (Norfolk, UK), 24th February 2017

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid (with Canada Geese), Flitcham (Norfolk, UK), 1st October 2003

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid, Fairburn Ings (Yorkshire, UK), 7th April 2019

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid (with Canada Goose), Swanton Morley fishing lakes (Norfolk, UK), 6th March 2004

One of these two birds may be an ordinary Canada Goose x Greylag Goose hybrid but the one at the back right certainly looks to have domestic ancestry. They are not necessarily siblings, so this does not necessarily indicate that the front one does too. However the front bird also seems to have a mostly black bill (and perhaps a longer than usual neck, though I'm not sure that isn't just because it's alert) so I suspect they've both got domestic ancestry.

2x Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrids (with Greylag Geese), Hayle estuary (Cornwall, UK), 10th August 2012

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid, Wissington (Norfolk, UK), 4th April 2015

Canada Goose x domestic Greylag Goose hybrid, Welney WWT (Norfolk, UK), 10th January 2015

For comparison, here are photos of the parent species.

Canada Goose, Swanton Morley fishing lakes (Norfolk, UK), 16th August 2008 and domestic Greylag Goose, Whitlingham Country Park (Norfolk, UK), 1st July 2011

For more photos of these species follow the links below: