Bar-headed Goose
by Winston D Munnings
Title
Bar-headed Goose
Artist
Winston D Munnings
Medium
Photograph - Digital Photography
Description
The Bar-headed Goose (Anser indicus) is a goose which breeds in Central Asia in colonies of thousands near mountain lakes. It lays three to eight eggs at a time in a ground nest. The summer habitat is high altitude lakes where the bird grazes on short grass. The species has been reported as migrating south from Siberia via the Qinghai lake region in China before its crossing of the Himalaya. The bird has come to the attention of medical science in recent years as having been an early victim of the H5N1 virus, HPAI (highly pathogenic avian influenza), at Qinghai. It suffers predation from crows, foxes, ravens, sea eagles and others.
The total population may, however, be increasing. The Bar-headed Goose is one of the world’s highest flying birds, having been seen at up to 10,175 m (33,382 feet). It has a slightly larger wing area for its weight than other geese and it is believed this helps the goose to fly high. Studies have found that they breathe more efficiently under low oxygen conditions and are able to reduce heat loss. The haemoglobin of their blood has a higher oxygen affinity than that of other geese.
Uploaded
May 27th, 2014
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