Lesser White-fronted Goose

The lesser white-fronted goose (Anser erythropus) is a goose closely related to the larger white-fronted goose (A. albifrons). It breeds in the northernmost Palearctic, but it is a scarce breeder in Europe. There is a re-introduction scheme in Fennoscandia. The scientific name comes from anser, the Latin for "goose", and erythropus, "red-footed", derived from the old Greek eruthros "red" and pous "foot". The lesser white-fronted goose winters further south in Europe and is a rare winter vagrant to Great Britain and India. Individual birds formerly appeared regularly at WWT Slimbridge in Gloucestershire, England, where they inspired Sir Peter Scott to set up The Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust—modern records, however, are far less frequent, a consequence of the species' decline on its European breeding grounds. An attractive species, it is also widely kept in wildfowl collections and, as a result, escapes do occur; individuals seen in summer, or in the company of other feral geese, are likely to be of captive origin.