Waterfowl

Barnacle goose

Branta leucopsis

Group: Waterfowl
Size class: Small (under 10 kg)
Family: Anatidae

Range

Europe
Arctic

Habitat

Farmland
Coast

Range

Countries it is found in

26 countries

Austria
Belgium
Denmark
Estonia
Faroe Islands
Finland
France
Germany
Greenland
Iceland
Ireland
Isle of Man
Italy
Kazakhstan
Latvia
Lithuania
Netherlands
Norway
Poland
Russia
Serbia
Spain
Svalbard & Jan Mayen
Sweden

Range from:Wikipedia country bird lists — read 2026-08-05

Chapter 01

Overview

The barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis) belongs to the black geese of the genus Branta, the group whose extensive black plumage separates them from the grey Anser geese. Despite a superficial likeness to the brant goose, genetic analysis puts its closest relative as the cackling goose. Bechstein classified it in 1803. Branta is a Latinised Old Norse Brandgás, 'burnt (black) goose', and leucopsis is Greek for 'white-faced'. In the medieval period the barnacle and brant were not distinguished, and both were believed to spawn from the goose barnacle — the belief behind the name.

Chapter 02

Identification

A medium-sized goose, 55–70 cm long with a 120–145 cm wingspan and a weight of 1.21–2.23 kg, with black legs and a small stubby black bill. The face is white, the head, neck and upper breast black, and the belly white. The wings and back are silver-grey with black-and-white bars that appear to shine when the light catches them.

On the table

Meat & cooking

Table grade 5 of 55/5

Sold as meat in a legal market
Has a named traditional dish
Published way to handle and cook it
Eaten in more than one country
No known health advisory

Traditional preparations

Roast goose: Wild goose is roasted whole or the breast taken off and cooked rare; the bird is far leaner than a farmed goose and dries out quickly. Roast goose — Wikipedia
Confit and rillettes: Legs and tougher cuts are traditionally preserved in fat, which suits a bird that has flown a long way. Confit — Wikipedia

Sources

Sources: Barnacle goose — Wikipedia — read 2026-08-05

Cross-reference