JONG H DE & PHILIPPONA J (1975) The occurrence of geese in Noordoostpolder and Flevoland. LIMOSA 48 (1): 60-73.

Greater White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons Taiga Bean Goose Anser fabalis Barnacle Goose Branta leucopsis Canada Goose Branta canadensis Pink-footed Goose Anser brachyrhynchus = Anser fabalis brachyrhynchus Greylag Goose Anser anser Dark-bellied Brent Goose Branta bernicla This paper deals with the importance of Flevoland and the Noordoostpolder for wild geese. These polders are recently reclaimed IJssellakepolders in the centre of the Netherlands. (Fig. 1) The Noordoostpolder was reclaimed in 1942. Flevoland was reclaimed in two parts. Oostelijk Flevoland was reclaimed in 1957, Zuidelijk Flevoland in 1968. The area of the polders is about 146.000 ha. The soil mainly consists of clay. After? the enclosure of the dikes there were for some years large areas with shallow water and a vegetation of mainly Typha and Pharagrnites. With the reclamation ditches were made and crops of rape and cereals were grown in a large scale governmental farm (about 20.000 ha every year). After some years of governmental farming farmhouses are built and the land is let out to farmers. During the different stages of development the area is important to a lot of bird species, especially as a feeding and resting place for geese. At night the geese choose other places to stay as by qay. Fig. 1 shows the most important localities of the geese. The sleeping places are Zwarte Meer, some parts of the IJsselmeer and the northern part of Zuidelijk Flevoland, which consists of marshland and shallow open water (Fig. 4). The distances between sleeping places and feeding areas vary in the Noordoostpolder between 1 km up to 10 km. In Flevoland flying-distances of 15 to 20 km are frequently recorded. The Grey-lag Goose Anser anser however usually feeds at much shorter distances from the sleeping place. The most numerous geese in the Noordoostpolder are the White-fronted Goose Anser albifrons (Fig. 2) and the Bean-Goose Anser fabalis. The latter especially in the south-eastern part of the polder. The White-fronted Geese are present from December until January. The numbers are usually below 10.000, sometimes up to 15.000. The average numbers of the Bean Geese are between 1.000 and 2.000, sometimes over 3.000. In the western and south??western part of the polder there are frequently hundreds to some thousands of Barnacle Geese Branta leucopsis (Fig. 2) to be found. In two winters (1970 and 1972) a hundred of Canada Geese Branta canadensis were seen. Other geese such as Grey-lag Goose and Pink-footed Goose Anser brachyrhynchus have been observed. In Flevoland the White-fronted Geese are the most numerous. In 1965 only some hundreds of these geese were seen. In 1969 some thousands were present. After 1970 the numbers increased considerably. The last few years the geese were numerous from December until March. The numbers are usually about 30.000. Grey-Lag Geese are mainly seen in the marshland of Zuide1ijk Flevoland. The highest numbers are reached in October and November and in March. They amount to some thousands up to about 15.000. Zuidelijk Flevoland also became a moulting place (some hundreds) and a breeding area (some tens) for this species. Bean Geese and Pink-footed Geese are less numerous. The former species is usually present in some thousands of individuals, the latter average numbers of some tens. The feeding area of the geese is mainly the agricultural land. They feed on grassland as well as on land with crops of winterwheat or on land where sugar-beets or potatoes were grown. In Flevoland the largest numbers are seen in the large-scale agricultural area, managed by the government. From investigation of faeces of the Grey-Lag Goose several plant species appeared to belong to the food of the birds. Mainly different species of gramimea:e were found, but also leaves and seeds of Typha latifiolia, Brassica napus, Stellaria media, Polygonum lapathifolium and Taraxacum spec. The geese, staying in the marshland, feed almost exclusively on Phragmites and Typha. First they takie the overground parts later in the season mainly underground parts. In Flevoland geese shooting is limited to a few cases is which damage to the agricultural crops is expected. However usually no or at least little damage is done. A reserve of about 1.500 hi!. is made in Zuidelijk Flevoland. This consists of grassland, in which a part of 300 ha is flooded in winter.

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