The status of Ross's Goose in 1962-63

Abstract

In 1962-63 there were at least 25,000 Ross's Geese in California. Earlier estimates, of as few as 2,000 in 1949, were probably too low because too little was known about the distribution of Ross's Geese in California and of their mixing with Snow Geese. Attempts to estimate the population size by the mark and recapture technique, utilising 161 geese colour-marked in the Perry River breeding area in the summer of 1962 and a further 292 marked in Saskatchewan later that year, proved unsatisfactory. Some neck-bands had been lost and no red-dyed geese could be detected, but the main cause of failure was the low ratio of marked to unmarked geese.