ROCHESTER — Bird watchers have been visiting a local birding "hotspot" in numbers, as there have been three rare species of geese visiting the corn fields located at triangle of Rounseville Road, Bowens Lane and Vaughan Hill Road in Rochester. The three rarities that were sighted were a snow goose, a greater white-fronted goose and, last week, two barnacle geese. 

 

Sippican Lands Trust member Alan Harris reported seeing some New Hampshire license plates among the cars at the site.  

 

Nasketucket Bird Club member Carol Molander said that, “the rare geese have been mixed with up to a thousand Canada geese on some days. This makes looking for the ‘special ones’ like the game Where's Waldo.”

 

The snow goose in the area is a blue form, a morph with blackish body and white face, as opposed to all white with black wingtips. Both forms have a pink-orange bill and legs.

 

The greater white-fronted goose is a brown goose with dark bars on its belly, orange legs and bill, and the adult bird has a white band around the base of bill.

 

The barnacle goose is smaller than the Canada goose, at approximately 25-28 inches, has a black neck and cap surrounding a white face, small dark bill, barred gray back, and black chest which contrasts with a white belly. They are common in Europe.