Greater white-fronted goose
| Greater white-fronted goose | |
|---|---|
| A greater white-fronted goose during migration in the Central Valley of California | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Anseriformes |
| Family: | Anatidae |
| Genus: | Anser |
| Species: | A. albifrons |
| Binomial name | |
| Anser albifrons (Scopoli, 1769) | |
| Subspecies | |
| |
| Distribution map of subspecies of greater white-fronted goose | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Branta albifrons Scopoli, 1769 | |
The greater white-fronted goose (Anser albifrons) is a species of goose that is closely related to the smaller lesser white-fronted goose (A. erythropus). The greater white-fronted goose is migratory, breeding in northern Canada, Alaska, Greenland and Russia, and winters farther south in North America, Europe and Asia. It is named for the patch of white feathers bordering the base of its bill: albifrons comes from the Latin albus "white" and frons "forehead". In the United Kingdom and Ireland, it has been known as the white-fronted goose; in North America it is known as the greater white-fronted goose (or "greater whitefront"), and this name is also increasingly adopted internationally. Even more distinctive are the salt-and-pepper markings on the breast of adult birds, which is why the goose is colloquially called the "specklebelly" in North America.