We have been looking at the Dark-bellied Brent Geese - the word Brent comes from an old Norse word ‘brand’, meaning burnt, which describes their dark colour.
They are small, dark geese - slightly bigger than a duck - with a black head and neck, grey-brown back, and a dark belly. Adults have a small white neck patch ( the ‘necklace’).

We see them here flying around Poole Harbour and Studland Bay in Dorset, or feeding at low tide. They eat vegetation - especially eel-grass.

They arrive in this area in October to spend the winter. They leave in April or early May to fly back to their nesting grounds in Russia on the Taimyr peninsular. They are quite sociable and make ‘bbrrnnkk’ noises to talk with each other. When they fly you can listen for the ‘honk honk’ sounds!

Find out more about the geese from the websites on the links page...