Strange canada i shot last week

kt · #1 12-19-2007, 11:30 AM

Curious what ya'll think, i picked a bird out of a threesome last week in the ice storm because this bird was abnormally small. my buddy killed a resident canada monster right next to it. upon closer examination this goose was the size of mallard hen we already had in the bag. i noticed also that this gooses head looks out of proportion like somebody pushed the nose back into the face. so i sent it to a friend who has been looking for a carving speciment of a lesser canada. well he has since called to ask me if i noticed the white neck ring at the base of the black neck. now he has my goose and has me thinking this may not be an average lesser, i will try to get some pictures but we are missing eachother in a game of phone tag.
kt
any ideas?'

gspsonny03 · #2 12-19-2007, 02:08 PM

I believe they are called cacklings. I'm not sure about the spelling, but something like that. The size is about right. I think that I have only been involved with shooting two of them my self.

multibeard · #3 12-19-2007, 06:24 PM

Sounds like a cackler to me too.

I shot one a few year ago. There were a few subspecies of canadas of this size going by differnt names. Last year the feds grouped them all together under the name Cackler.

skeet · #4 12-19-2007, 09:49 PM

Although known as cackling geese the subspecies you probbably got is really known as a Richardson's goose. One of the cackling subspecies. About the same size as a Ross's goose(white). Little bit larger than a mallard unless young of the year. Somewhat pointed bill with a fairly sharp nail on the end. The only cackler that really seems to go that far east. Shot a few over the years. You have a really neat bird and if possible you should have it mounted. You just don't see that many in the east and it is somewhat unique. Congrats

BTW if you can... post a pic

fabsroman · #5 12-19-2007, 10:28 PM

I don't if the scientists reclassified them, but there used to be 11 species of canada goose. Who knows, maybe some went the way of Pluto.

I am really interested in seeing a pic of your goose KT. I once shot a duck that was the size of a goose. It was a cross between a mallard and a dometicated duck. Now, it is mounted.

Lilred · #6 12-20-2007, 07:05 AM

I've never killed one of those geese, but I've had freinds kill em and I always thought they were a cull goose or just some freak of nature. Never knew there was subspecies of the Canada goose.
Thanks fer the lessons fellas!
BTW...aint seen but a few geese my way this year. They must be flyin more to the coast?? Weird...

Nulle · #7 12-20-2007, 07:31 AM

I have taken a few of the little Richardson geese over the years but not many in my area.

tjwatty · #8 12-20-2007, 08:59 AM

I'm amazed, I thought everyone had those things. Around here we have at least 3 different subspieces. Richardson, Hutchings and the good old Giants. Last week I observed a field that had over a thousand geese on it. All three subs in one field and on this particular day they were not observing non-segragation rules. The east end had the Hutchies, the middle the Richardson and the west giants. Kinda funny to see but not normally done that way. Yesterday in a different field they were all mixed and mallards also. Last week the mallards weren't even in the same field.
Last year I hunted out in Kansas near Quivera and Cheyenne bottoms and the majority of the geese were lessers. If any of you ever have the chance to hunt there it's quite a sight, over a million and a half birds, snows, blues, lessers, giants, specks, ross's etc. the farmers are begging for hunters to get them off the wheat. IT'S COOL..........
The only thing about kt's bird was the ring on the neck, I've never seen that before, that is strange. I had a giant once whose face patch was upside down so old mother nature can do some strange things.

kt · #9 12-20-2007, 04:03 PM

the descriptions sound pretty right on. seems funny that the bird with it was a absolute giant resident canada. i will see about the photo, although i do believe he probably has it in the ice box by now. very cool
kt

multibeard · #10 12-20-2007, 05:53 PM

When I shot the little goose, I had a discussion over what subspecies I had shot with some one on the internet. I was calling it a cackler and they said if it didn't have a ring it was a Richardson and that cacklers did not come to Michigan.

I posed the question of the ring to both the Oregon and Washington guys on another web site as they have lots of cacklers. Their response was that not all cacklers had rings on their necks. I was also able to find documentation of a few cacklers being taken in Michigan.

Last year a friend and i I were field hunting mallards after out 30 day regular Canada goose season was closed the end of October. there were a few snows and blues hanging around with the gees and they were legal game.

Not having heard that many blues and snow when I heard a squeaky call I thought that it was the snows/blues. Luckily I held off looking for an eagle head. It was a flock of richies/cacklers which were out of season.

Doesn't matter any more what you want to call them as the feds have grouped them all together as cacklers.

DelDuck · #11 12-31-2007, 08:39 AM

Sorry guy for being a little late chiming in guys I have a lot of personal stuff going on.

Aren't they just neatest little things. We shot one last year, it came in with a group of about 20 reg. geese. It was the 1st time I had ever been involved with shooting one. Just wish it had been banded there would have been a 3 way battle royal in the middle of the field

kt · #12 01-13-2008, 10:29 PM

i really dont know what my buddy ever did with it , i couldnt see gettting a canada goose mounted, sorry. about a week later after we had our limits one came in and landed in the pond, it started calling to other birds, sounded like it sucked helium. but he has lived to see another day
kt