Ardea
Official journal of the Netherlands Ornithologists' Union

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Mooij J.H. (1991) Numbers and distribution of Grey geese (genus Anser) in the Federal Republic of Germany, with special reference to the lower Rhine region. ARDEA 79 (2): 125-133
The most important Anser geese wintering in the Federal Republic of Germany (before reunion) are the White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons and the Bean Goose Anser fabalis. With peak numbers of almost 140 000 White-fronted and 45 000 Bean Geese in winter 1987/88, the Lower Rhine area was the most important Anser goose wintering area, and is second in importance only to The Netherlands within the western European perspective. The Dollart region is the second-best grey goose wintering site in Germany. Peak numbers of 58 000 White-fronted and 10 000 Bean Geese in the winter of 1987/88 brought the Dollart region to the second place, and to the fourth place in western Europe. Other wintering areas for Anser geese in the Federal Republic of Germany are in the coastal areas of Schleswig-Holstein and Niedersachsen, the plains of the Elbe, the Upper Rhine and the Upper Danube. These sites are less important as wintering sites because most of the northern sites only are used during migration and the numbers on the southern sites are small. Both of the main wintering sites are threatened by agricultural and economic developments.


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