Migration Patterns of Nordic Greylag Geese Anser anser.

Migration patterns of Nordic Greylag Geese Anser anserwere studied by means of neck-collaring. A total of 4173birds (738 breeders, 1999 goslings and 1436 moulters;most moulters subsequently identified as belonging to aspecified breeding population) was marked throughoutNorway, Sweden, Denmark and Finland during 1984–1994. This report is based on observations made up to 30June 1995. In general, Norwegian Greylag Geese left theirbreeding areas rapidly for staging areas in Denmark and/or the Netherlands during the period late August – earlySeptember, but the most northerly breeding populationsmigrated south much later and not so rapidly. After a longrefuelling period most Norwegian Greylags left theNetherlands for wintering areas in Spain during November.The Guadalquivir Marismas in the south-western part ofthe country was the main wintering area, but sites in theDuero Basin in the north-central part gained importancethroughout the study period. Normally, the geese left Spainin February, for a long stop-over in the Netherlands.Breeders returned to Vega in Norway in April, but to Tromsand Finnmark not until May. Most Greylags from Scaniaand Denmark, all belonging to the West Baltic population,remained in the breeding area until October, merging intolarger and larger flocks, together with returning moultersand birds from more northern breeding grounds. Themajority made only a short stop-over in the Netherlandsen-route to their main winter quarter, the GuadalquivirMarismas, Spain. An increasing proportion wintered in theDutch Delta. In general, West Baltic Greylags left theirwinter quarters during the first two weeks of February andmigrated rapidly to the breeding grounds. Largely,Norwegian and West Baltic Greylags used different stagingareas in the Netherlands and non-overlapping feedingareas in Spain. Outside the Atlantic flyway there is a fewre-sightings from England of Norwegian and Swedishbirds as well as one re-sighting each from Scotland andHungary of a Swedish Greylag. Finnish reylags werefound along both the Atlantic flyway, down to theGuadalquivir Marismas, and the Continental flyway, downto Tunisia and Algeria. Winter quarters of the two studiednaturalised populations were situated apart from the mainones; Greylags from the Oslo area wintered in theNetherlands and the majority from Södermanland at Lacdu Der, east of Paris