Newborn, day-old, Canada goose goslings wading in shallow water at Century Park in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada.
The baby goslings pictured here are a day old. The goslings of the Canada goose (Branta canadensis) are mmediately capable of walking, swimming, and finding their own food (a diet similar to the adult geese). Parents are often seen leading their goslings in a line, usually with one adult at the front, and the other at the back. While protecting their goslings, parents often violently chase away nearby creatures, from small blackbirds to lone humans who approach, after warning them by giving off a hissing sound and then attack with bites and slaps of the wings if the threat does not retreat or has seized a gosling. Canada geese are especially protective animals, and will sometimes attack any animal nearing its territory or offspring, including humans. Most of the species that prey on eggs also take a gosling. Although parents are hostile to unfamiliar geese, they may form groups of a number of goslings and a few adults, called crèches. The offspring enter the fledgling stage any time from 6 to 9 weeks of age. They do not leave their parents until after the spring migration, when they return to their birthplace. *** Description partially sourced from Wikipedia.
Size: 3305px × 2260px
Location: Century Park, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
Photo credit: © Felix Choo / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: animal, animals, babies, baby, bird, birds, branta, canada, canadensis, canadian, chick, chicks, cute, day, day-, feathers, fluffy, fuzzy, geese, goose, gosling, goslings, newborn, pond, waterfowl
