Do geese quack

7 Distinctive Noises Geese Can Make (And What They Mean) – Fauna Facts

Geese make various noises, including honk, hink, bark, whistle, and hiss, in a similar way to other waterfowl species like ducks and swans. In addition, ornithologists have discovered some unique geese calls only made in very specific situations, including an alarm call when they feel threatened, and a brood call to call their goslings.

Geese are some of the most social of all bird species, often living in flocks several thousand birds strong and famously mating for life. It’s not surprising then that geese have quite a large range of vocalizations that they use to communicate with their flock and other animals.

In this article, we’ll look at some of the unique calls and vocalizations geese make and learn about what each of them means.

Noises that Geese Can Make

Most people know that geese are quite noisy creatures, but their stereotypical honking is only scratching the surface of their complex series of calls and vocalizations.

Here are some different calls and noises a goose might make, what they sound like, and when they might make them…

Call	Used By	Sounds Like	Meaning
Honk	All geese	Low pitched and loud call	Almost any situation. Honking is the default noise of a goose.
Hink	Female geese	Higher pitched call	Greeting call
Brood Call	Mother Geese	Low Warbling or Murmuring	Mother geese calling to her goslings
Alarm Call	All Geese	Loud shrieking	When a goose sees a predator or threat to the flock
Cackle	All Geese	Laughter	Greeting other birds, and used in mating ritual
Whistle	Goslings	A songbird chirping	How baby geese (goslings) call before they can honk.
Hiss	All Geese	A loud cat hissing	Used as a threat display to ward off predators or threats.

1. Honk

Honk is the most common sound made by geese. Geese honk in almost any situation to communicate with other geese, or to ward off predators or other animals.

Similar to a duck’s quack or a chicken’s cluck, a goose’s honk is the default noise made when a goose wants to vocalize. 

2. Hink

A lesser-known sound, a hink is a higher-pitched sound made only by female geese and is usually used as a greeting.

When a goose pair meet, the male (also known as a Gander) will continuously honk at the female goose, who will hink back in response. As the two synchronize, eventually the pair sounds like a single bird. 

This is the perfect metaphor for a goose pair, who typically mate for life.

The Wildlife Rescue League describes a hink as sounding somewhat similar to the barking of a small dog.

3. Brood Call

A brood call is a low murmuring sound made by a goose with a brood of goslings, to call them back to their mother.

Like many social bird species, individual geese have slightly different brood calls to help chicks identify their mother easily.

4. Cackle

A cackling goose sounds almost like it’s laughing. Similar to ducks and swans, geese cackle to let other birds in their flock know where they are, as a greeting, and during their complex courting rituals.

There is even a species of goose called the Cackling Goose (Branta hutchinsii) which is very closely related to the Canada Goose (Branta canadensis).

5. Alarm Call

A goose’s alarm call is a loud, shrill shriek. Loud enough to pierce through any background noise, geese reserve this sound for when they spot a predator like a fox or wolf that could pose a threat to their flock.

In a 2003 study published in the Journal of Wildlife Management, it was found that playing the alarm call of geese over a loudspeaker was enough to drive geese away from an area and prevent them from returning.

6. Whistle

Only juvenile geese (goslings) can whistle. This high-pitched chirping noise is used to communicate before they are old enough to honk.

Whistling goslings sound like the regular chirping of some other smaller birds.

7. Hiss

A goose hisses as a warning. Usually part of a larger threat display, the hissing is often accompanied by flapping wings and swinging necks.

Geese may hiss at other geese, other birds, or other animals they feel may be a threat to them, similar to a growling dog, hissing cat, or roaring lion.

If you’re feeding geese at the park and they hiss at you, it just means they are scared of you and want you to leave them alone. (But leave the seeds!)

Read More: Why you shouldn’t feed ducks and geese bread

Do Geese Honk or Quack?

Typically, geese do not make quacking noises like ducks, but loud, lower-pitched honk sounds instead. A duck’s quack is similar to a goose’s honk because it’s the default noise made when the bird vocalizes.

Similar to ducks quacking, geese honk almost anywhere and for any reason, honking loudly or softly depending on the situation.

Although a goose’s honk is more low-pitched than a duck’s quack, the two species frequently live and nest together in large mixed flocks of waterfowl, and geese are intelligent enough to imitate sounds they hear. 

Smaller species of geese have honks that sound more like a duck’s quack, and larger duck species have loud quacks that sound more similar to a goose’s honk.

Can Geese Sing?

Geese are not songbirds and can not sing. The closest noise to singing that a goose can make is a high-pitched whistling only usually heard coming from goslings.

Birds usually sing to attract a mate. Instead of singing, geese have complicated courtship rituals that involve dancing, cackling, and bobbing their heads in and out of the water.

Read More: Do Geese Mate For Life?

What Noise do Geese Make While Flying?

Geese honk while flying. This helps them stick together in a ‘V’  formation, which has proven aerodynamic benefits over flying solo or in a disorganized group.

Similarly, geese honk and cackle wildly when it comes time for the flock to take flight in unison. The wild honks help the geese to coordinate their takeoff and ensure they stay together in the air.

Read More: Why Do Geese Honk When They Fly?

What Noises do Geese Make at Night

At night, geese may honk quietly, similar to cows lowing in a cow herd. This signals that everything is alright and helps the birds understand their position within the flock.

If geese see a predator, especially at night, they are likely to shriek wildly to warn the rest of the flock. 

Geese have to deal with foxes, wolves, wild dogs, humans, rats, seals, and snakes as potential threats depending on whether they are in their warm overwinter spot or their arctic summer nesting grounds.

Read More: Where Do Geese Go At Night?

What Does It Mean if a Goose Honks At You

Geese honk for any number of reasons, including a friendly greeting and a warning to predators, so it’s important to be aware of the goose’s body language. In general, if a wild goose is honking at you, it probably means you’re getting a bit too close to them. 

Other signs of a threat display include flapping their wings wildly, hissing, enlarging their body, and swinging their necks. If you notice these signs, the goose definitely doesn’t want you anywhere near it and it probably has a nest nearby.

Where geese have become used to humans (in parks, ponds, and farms) geese may also have learned that if they honk at tourists, they will feed them.  

Read More: What Makes Geese So Aggressive?

Conclusion

To sum up, geese honk, hink, cackle, and shriek depending on the situation. Their complex series of calls shed some light on the complex social structures found in goose society.

Some geese calls are much rarer than others, including the low brooding call of a mother goose calling to her goslings. Since many geese nest in the high arctic, it’s not a common sound for humans.

Certain sounds that geese make can be considered a warning, including the high-pitched shriek of their distress call, and the loud hiss of their threat display.

Stuart

Stuart is the editor of Fauna Facts. He edits our writers’ work as well as contributing his own content. Stuart is passionate about sustainable farming and animal welfare and has written extensively on cows and geese for the site.

Do geese honk or quack?

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Well, for the most part that is true, but although many geese do honk and most ducks do quack, others make altogether different sounds. Some geese cackle and cluck like hens and chickens. Some ducks squeal, squeak and cluck. And a male Redhead Duck MEOWS like a cat.

What do goose sounds mean?

The “honk” call of the Canada goose is used variously to ward off intruders, advertise territory boundaries, as a long-distance call, to answer a mate, as part of a greeting ceremony after being separated from a mate, and when in flight or about to take flight. The honk call is loud and resonant (Whitford, 1998).May 4, 2015

How do geese honk?

When geese fly in formation, they create their own unique form of teamwork. As each bird flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird immediately following. ... Geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep up their speed.

Does a goose hiss?

Geese are very territorial and protective, so they scream and hiss at humans or other animals who get too close to their nests and babies.Apr 24, 2020

What is a female goose called?

A male goose is called a gander. A female goose is (sometimes) called a dame. A young goose is called a gosling. A group of geese together on the ground is called a gaggle.May 30, 2013

Is a goose female?

The term "goose" may refer to either a male or female bird, but when paired with "gander", refers specifically to a female one (the latter referring to a male). Young birds before fledging are called goslings.

Do geese make sounds at night?

Quite a lot of birds fly at nighttime, actually. Most often during migration, but night flying of Canada Geese during winter has been recorded as well (and I suspect if you're hearing them at night, they're flying and calling to each other, not making noise on the ground).

How do you tell if a goose likes you?

If your goose kisses you, that means they love you! Geese will nibble and preen on each other as a sign of affection, and if they love their people enough, they will do it for them as well.Apr 9, 2021

Why is a goose honking so much?

Geese honk when they fly as a way of keeping the flock together. ... But for geese, honking one's position is a trade-off that helps helps save energy for the flock as they fly. That is because the V-formation makes flight less energetically costly for the entire flock.Aug 23, 2019

What happens if a goose mate dies?

Geese are very loyal. ... When a goose's mate dies, that bird will mourn in seclusion—and some geese spend the rest of their lives as widows or widowers, refusing to mate again.

Do geese bark?

Calls. Various loud honks, barks, and cackles. Also some hisses.

Where do geese sleep?

In the wild, geese mostly sleep on the water. Only when they feel secure from the predators that they can roost on land as well. In the meantime, farm geese can sleep anywhere they feel comfortable but usually tend to return to the same spot every night.

Can geese be friendly?

Geese are fun to have around. Most geese are friendly, and with personality galore, some individuals may bond with you much like a dog, follow you around, give you "gooseneck" hugs, and be very interested in what you're doing.

Does goose bite hurt?

Goose bites usually are not serious, but they are painful and can leave bruises. Their wings are powerful, so getting hit by them can break your nose or worse.

Is it illegal to kick a goose?

Federal law protects Canada geese. It is illegal to harm geese, their eggs, or their nests in the United States without permission from the U. S. Fish and Wild Service (USFWS). Geese may be harassed or scared away without a permit as long as the geese, goslings, eggs, and nests are not harmed.

What are baby geese called?

Young birds before fledging are called goslings. The collective noun for a group of geese on the ground is a gaggle; when in flight, they are called a skein, a team, or a wedge; when flying close together, they are called a plump. Goslings, unlike baby mammals, are self-sufficient within days of birth.

What is the female name of Fox?

A female fox is called a “vixen”, a male fox is called a “dog fox” or a “tod” and baby foxes are called “pups”, “kits” or “cubs”. A group of foxes is called a “skulk” or a “leash”.Apr 26, 2012

What kind of noise does a goose make?

Many people report that as their goose becomes more familiar with them, they will have a low humming sound. It sounds very similar to a murmur. You may barely notice it. The geese may also use this around other geese that they are friendly with too. This is one of those goose sounds that seems to appear a lot more frequently in the younger birds.

What does it mean when a goose is about to fly?

“I am About to Fly” Goose Sound. If you raise geese, then this may not actually be a sound you hear all that much. This is because your geese may not be taking flight all that often. However, it is a common sound among wild geese. When a goose is ready to fly, it will lift its head up to the point where their chin is completely raised.

Are there any free sound effects for geese?

Goose Sound Effects. A wide variety of sound effects for your enjoyment. Free mp3 Downloads. License: Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0). You are allowed to use sound effects free of charge and royalty free in your multimedia projects for commercial or non-commercial purposes.

What kind of goose is black with a white neck?

The Canada Goose Branta canadensis is a wild goose belonging to the genus Branta, which is native to Arctic and temperate regions of North America, having a black head and neck, white patches on the face, and a brownish-gray body. Very clean and clear bobwhite quail sound effect recorded by our friend Tony Phillips of Long Island NY.

Flocks of geese in the sky (part 1)

Once upon a time, wild geese flying to Japan from Siberia were found literally everywhere, but as a result of uncontrolled extermination in the Meiji era, their number was reduced to five thousand. The process of saving the geese was launched thanks to a letter from the Soviet Union.

One picture imprinted in my soul for the rest of my life. A few years after World War II, when I was in elementary school, my family returned from evacuation to a burned-out Tokyo. It was autumn. In the clearest, cloudless sky, I saw a school of birds of the correct geometric shape. Several dozen geese kept their way, exchanging signal grunts.

People around me exclaimed: “Geese, geese are flying!”, “These are geese quacking!”. When I told my mother about what I saw, she sang me the lullaby “Motherland” (“Satogokoro”, lyrics by Kitahara Hakushu, music by Nakayama Shimpei): “Geese, geese, stand in a row, fly far ...”.

At that time, geese were not uncommon in Tokyo; they were even considered one of the symbols of the season. Since then, I have never seen geese in the capital, but over the past ten years in different parts of Japan I have heard eyewitness accounts of schools of flying geese.

White-fronted Geese Habitat

In the first decade of October, I found myself on the Ishikari Plain in the western part of Hokkaido. Not far from the river of the same name flowing through the center of the plain, there is a small Miyajima swamp with an area of ​​\u200b\u200babout 3 hectares. The trees surrounding the marsh were beginning to turn an autumnal crimson. In the sky one could see the strict silhouettes of goose shoals, not inferior in beauty to the autumn forest. Birds lined up either in vertical or horizontal lines, formed shoals and, cutting through the air with their wings, moved towards the swamp. Suddenly the shoals broke up and the birds, like autumn leaves, were gliding on the water surface, exchanging high-pitched quacks.

White-fronted geese over the Miyajima swamp (photo by Nakamura Takashi)

They have finally completed their three thousand kilometers journey from Siberia. Flocks of birds appeared in the rice fields, eager to eat the remaining rice panicles. The geese have invaded the swamp, and their quacking seems already too noisy. Involuntarily, a poem came to mind that Kobayashi Issa composed. The poet loved geese so much that he dedicated 448 poems to them. Issa wrote these lines on the coast of Sotogahama in Mutsu Bay (Aomori Prefecture):

Well, from now on
You can all sleep well -
You are in Japan, geese!
(translated by A. Dolin)

In 2002, the Miyajima Wetland was registered as a “Wetland of International Importance” under the Ramsar Convention. Many birds fly here - geese, white swans, white herons, grebes, shovelers. Miyajima is the northernmost and largest haunt of migratory geese, and one of the largest staging posts in the world. The birds stopping here find food and store strength for the flight to the Tohoku and Hokuriku regions, and some continue on their way to Asian countries.

Miyajima Swamp White-fronted Geese (photo courtesy of the Miyajima Aquatic Birds and Wetlands Center)

Miyajima Aquatic Birds and Wetlands Center researches white-fronted geese stopping at Miyajima Swamp before traveling north. It turned out that in the period from 1975 to 1988, the number of geese did not reach five hundred, even at the height of the migratory season, and silence reigned in the swamp. However, since 1997, the number of geese has exceeded the mark of forty thousand, and in 2015 a historical record was recorded - 80,000 birds. After resting in the Miyajima swamp, the geese fly across the Sea of ​​Okhotsk and the Kamchatka peninsula to the breeding regions of Siberia.

The habitat of geese in Japan

The Japanese character 雁 has long been used to write the word "goose", which has two readings - gan and kari . This is a common name for a genus of geese, not indicating a specific subspecies. There are 14 species of geese known worldwide; nine have been recorded in Japan, including the white-fronted goose, goose, little Canada goose and black goose. 90% of the livestock is accounted for by the white-fronted goose. All types of geese arrive in Japan for wintering from September to March.

White-fronted geese are dark brown birds with a gray tint. In size, geese are a cross between a mallard and a white swan. Because of the white spot on their head, they are nicknamed "white-fronted" including in Chinese (白額雁) and English (white-fronted goose) languages. People have long been sympathetic to these birds, they are often mentioned in folk tales, songs, literature and ancient chronicles. The image of geese can be found on screens and other works of art; in addition, geese are a popular symbol for family coats of arms.

White-fronted geese are migratory birds that breed in Greenland, Canada, Alaska, Siberia and other northern regions and winter in warm regions such as Europe, North America and Japan. The figure shows a typical representative of the goose family (illustrated by Izuka Tsuyoshi).

In the ancient collection of poetry "Collection of Myriad Leaves" ( Manyoshu ) 80 poems are devoted to geese; in frequency of mention, they are second only to cuckoos. In the description of the shogun's hunt in the official chronicle of the Tokugawa dynasty in the Edo era, 467 birds from the genus of geese are mentioned - this is the most common bird in this work, surpassing even cranes.

Goose meat is also popular in Japan. Goose bones have even been found in piles of kitchen waste from the Jōmon era. During the Nara and Heian era, goose meat became a popular delicacy for the imperial family and the nobility. During the Edo period, the consumption of wild poultry meat was temporarily banned, but goose meat proved to be an exception. Among the indispensable ingredients for oden soup is the so-called gammodoki , a soy mass product used as a meat substitute in Buddhist vegetarian cuisine shojin ryori . gammodoki is said to mimic the taste of real goose. Is this not evidence of the excellent taste of goose meat?

In 1734, the eighth shogun of the Tokugawa dynasty, Yoshimune, ordered the herbal medicine scientist Niwa Shohaku to investigate the local flora, fauna, and minerals throughout the country. The results of the study were reflected in the book "Notebooks of production of all provinces in the years of Kyoho-Genbun". The original book has not survived, but its contents have been restored thanks to the efforts of the historian Yasuda Ken, who used the remaining handwritten copies. The book contains information about the habitats of wild flora and fauna throughout Japan and allows you to imagine the richness of nature in the Edo period.

The restored version of the book describes about 40% of the territory of the Japanese archipelago, using clearly drawn pictures of animals and plants, information about which came from specific principalities. For example, a cockroach is mentioned under the name amame in a report from Satsuma domain. Wolves at that time were found in a vast territory from the northeastern region of Tohoku to the island of Kyushu, and the now extinct otter - throughout the country. Judging by the book, geese inhabited almost the entire territory of Japan, excluding regions, the description of which has not been preserved. Geese were so common that they were considered the most common bird.

Utagawa Hiroshige, series "Famous Views of the Eastern Capital" ( Toto meisho ), "Morning in Takanawa" (from the funds of the Ukiyo-e Ota Memorial Museum)

The famous Japanese writer Mori Ogai (1862-1922) wrote the novel Goose," which takes place in Hongo, Tokyo's Ueno district. This is a story about a fleeting love between a medical student at the University of Tokyo and a beautiful girl who became a pawnbroker's concubine in order to be able to help her poor parents. One day, the hero throws a stone into the Shinobazu pond, accidentally hits a wild goose and it dies. Judging by the fact that the story mentions ten geese swimming on the water surface of the Shinobazu pond, it can be concluded that at the time the story was published in the magazine (1911-1913) there were wild geese in the center of Tokyo.

Extermination and restoration

With the advent of the Meiji period, hard times came for wild geese. Previously, Japan hunted only with nets and traps, but the lifting of the ban on the use of firearms has led to the uncontrolled extermination of wild birds. According to the statistics of the Forest Agency, until 1962 wild goose hunting was carried out throughout Japan, with the exception of three prefectures - Hiroshima, Kochi and Miyazaki.

Since 1967, in the region of Western Japan, the number of birds killed during hunting began to decline sharply. A book on migratory geese habitats, edited by Miyabayashi Yoshihiko of the Wild Goose Protection Society, indicates that 60,000 geese flew to Japan in the 1940s. However, in the 1970s this figure dropped to 5,000. In addition, the number of habitats for migratory geese decreased from 150 to 25.

In the second half of the 1950s and 1960s, wild geese disappeared in tandem with the increase in economic growth. Swamps and wetlands were covered with earth and turned into industrial zones, and on the wintering grounds of wild geese, work was carried out to strengthen the coast, residential areas and golf courses were built. Over the past 100 years, about 60% of the swamps have disappeared throughout the country. The wild geese had to seek refuge in the rice fields of the Tohoku region and the Sea of ​​Japan coast and lead a crowded life in tight spaces.

And then something happened. It happened in 1973. Yamashina Yoshimaro, who headed the Yamashina Ornithological Institute, called me to his office and showed me a letter that came from the Soviet Union. The letter asked the question: “Migratory birds flying from Siberia to North America, Europe and the Central East return to us every year in almost the same number, however, from migratory birds heading to Japan or flying south through Japan, they return very few. Why?".

Mr. Yamashina complained, “There are many migratory birds in the Japanese archipelago, and many of them travel between Asia, Russia, North America, Australia and other countries. However, no one takes seriously the fact that migratory birds are not the property of Japan, but belong to the international community.”

In April of the following year, at the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives of the 72nd session of Parliament, MP Kato Shizue, who listened to the opinion of Mr. Yamashin, read out a request from the USSR and turned to the responsible person from the Environmental Agency (the current Ministry of the Environment). The head of the department from the Agency reported that "in recent years our country has been able to achieve a strong economic development, however, I think that in the course of this process we have not paid due attention to such issues" (from verbatim materials), and during the debate promised to take measures to protection of migratory birds. This meeting of the Committee has made history by holding an open discussion on the protection of migratory birds.

Banner photo of wild geese over the Miyajima swamp (Courtesy of the Miyajima Aquatic Bird and Wetland Center)

(Japanese-language article published January 18, 2017)

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