Snow Goose Video

A quick video of the snow goose migration at Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge in northwest Missouri. Shot December 2010. Video shot with Panasonic GF1 with 20mm f/1.7 fixed lens. 720p HD AVCHD format.



Dress warm and carry an umbrella, but be careful if you wear a down jacket. They might take special aim at you as they fly overhead...


D.
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Honk Honk Honk

Two ducks in a sea of geese.

I had the chance to head to one of my favorite places in the state for viewing wildlife: Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge north of Kansas City. I got there at the tail end of the snow goose migration, and it was a sight to behold.

Liftoff.

A gaggle of 250,000 geese were on their way through to warmer climes. I watched for hours as they milled about and took off in small bunches to fly around get the blood pumping before landing for a rest again.

Migration.

In the evening just before sunset, they took off in huge flocks over the course of about 45 minutes. I figured they were just getting the blood flowing before settling in for a night of single-digit temperatures. I was wrong.

Fallen.

When I got back the next morning, there were maybe 5,000 geese left. The eagles feasted on the carcasses of the ones that didn't make it. I can't believe that many birds just hauled out at one time. The sound was impressive. I'll try to post a video in a few days.

D.

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