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The one set at Montrose Basin: Rare Ross’s goose makes friends with 72,350 pink-footed pals in spectacular Angus influx

Pink-footed geese at Montrose Basin. Pic: Kirsty Wright.

Montrose Basin is saying farewell to almost 75,000 passing visitors in the spectacular annual migration of pink-footed geese through Angus.

The number of birds recorded at the Scottish Wildlife Trust reserve reached a high of 72,350 this year.

And in their midst was a single rare Ross’s goose rarely seen outside its native North America.

Montrose Basin
The rare white Ross’s goose was picked out among a huge flock of pinkfeet at Montrose Basin. Pic: Ron Mitchell.

The first few hundred pink-footed geese arrived from Iceland and Greenland on September 19.

And just five days later there were 30,000.

Peak hit in October

The peak count was made by rangers and volunteers last month.

But numbers are rapidly falling now as the birds move on from Angus to wetlands in the east of England.

A small number of pinkfeet will winter at Montrose until spring triggers the return to their northerly breeding grounds.

Last month, an eagle-eyed watcher picked out the solitary Ross’s goose among the huge population of pink-footed cousins.

One theory is that the rarity may have escaped from captivity in Britain.

Record count in 2016

The largest number of pink-footed geese ever recorded on the Basin, an estimated 90,000 birds, came in October 2016.

Despite the departure of the pinkfeet there is still plenty to see at the Basin, including kingfishers and large numbers of wintering ducks.

The estuary reserve at the mouth of the River South Esk covers 750 hectares.

Montrose Basin Ranger Anna Cowie said: “The crowds of pink-footed geese disperse almost as quickly as they gather, which makes the spectacle created by huge numbers even more special to see and hear.

Pink-footed geese
More than 72,000 pink-footed geese were recorded at Montrose this year. Pic: Peter Barden

“The Basin is a superb resting place for them.

“They’re relatively well protected from predators, and there are large areas of surrounding farmland where they can find food.”

And hopes are high nature-loving visitors will continue to flock there in the winter months.

“Montrose Basin is a fantastic place to see a wide range of wildlife throughout the winter,” said Anna.

“Kingfishers are regularly seen, and this is a great time of year to spot wintering ducks.

“We counted almost 10,000 wigeon here at the start of November and there are also hundreds of shelduck and teal to be seen.”

Montrose Basin Visitor Centre is currently open from Friday to Monday, 10:30am to 4pm.