Anser erythropus; lesser white-fronted goose

Japanese: カリガネ（英語表記）Anser erythropus; lesser white-fronted goose

Anseriformes, Anatidae. Total length 53-66cm. Similar to the Greater White-fronted Goose, this species is slightly smaller, has a protruding white forehead at the base of the beak, and has yellow eye rings around the eyes. Apart from the white underbelly, the feathers are mostly gray-brown, with pale edges on the back, wings, tail, and thorax, forming a wavy horizontal stripe pattern. The chest is slightly paler, and although not clearly visible, there is a black stripe pattern on the abdomen. The beak is pink. They breed in the high latitudes of Eurasia, from the northern Scandinavian Peninsula to northern Siberia. They build nests in the tundra and feed on grass, grass seeds, and fallen ears of rice. They migrate to discontinuous wintering grounds after breeding, ranging from southeastern Europe to the Black Sea, and the southern part of the Caspian Sea, such as Iraq and Turkey, Japan, the southern Korean Peninsula, and southeastern China. As of 2013, the population is small, at about 30,000 birds worldwide, and only a small number of them spend the winter in Japan. In the Red Data Book of the Ministry of the Environment, it is designated as an endangered species of Class IB, which means it is at high risk of extinction in the near future. (→ Anatidae)

Source: Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia About Encyclopaedia Britannica Concise Encyclopedia Information

Japanese:

カモ目カモ科。全長 53～66cm。マガンに似るが，本種はやや小型で，嘴基部に接する白い額が出っ張り，眼のまわりに黄色の眼輪がある点などが異なる。下腹部が白いほかは，羽色はほぼ灰褐色で，背，翼，尾，胸腹部は羽縁が淡く，波型の横縞模様をつくっている。また，胸はやや色が淡く，明瞭ではないが，腹部に黒い帯模様がある。嘴は桃色。スカンジナビア半島北部からシベリア北部にかけてのユーラシア大陸の高緯度地域で繁殖する。ツンドラ地帯に巣をつくり，草や草の実，落ち穂などを食べる。繁殖を終えて渡る越冬地は不連続に分布し，ヨーロッパ南東部から黒海にかけての地域と，イラク，トルコなどカスピ海の南部，日本や朝鮮半島南部，中国南東部などである。生息数は 2013年現在世界で約 3万羽と少なく，日本で越冬するのはごく少数である。環境省のレッドデータブックでは近い将来絶滅の危険の高い絶滅危惧IB類に指定されている。（→ガンカモ類）

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