Geese arriving at Gruinart in the moonlight, Isle of Islay

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Picture of Barnacle Geese arriving at their roost under a full MoonVery last daylight with the Moon taking over providing some light at Gruinart. Some Barnacle Geese are arriving for the roost overnight.

 

Leucistic Barnacle Goose in flight at Gruinart, Isle of Islay

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Picture of a few Barnacle Geese in flight, one of them leucisticMay be not the best picture, but then again I was quite happy to spot it in the first place among the over 30,000 Barnacle Geese at Gruinart that day. If you look closely at the goose in the middle of the small group of three you’ll notice it is almost white, only the neck is grey. The experts tell me it is a leucistic Barnacle Goose, leucism is a condition characterized by reduced pigmentation in animals caused by a recessive allele.

(Wikipedia entry for Leucism)

Barnacle Geese lifting off at Gruinart, Isle of Islay

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Picture of a huge number of Barnacle Geese lifting off after being spookedHaving been spooked a massive number of Barnacle Geese is lifting off at Gruinart, a tremendous sight and sound.