Egyptian Goose ( Alopochen aegyptiaca, family: Anatidae)

Kruger Park Egyptian GeeseThe Egyptian Goose (Latin name Alopochen aegyptiaca) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 102 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 91 also a picture of the Egyptian Goose on page 97. The Egyptian Goose belongs to the family of birds classified as Anatidae.

The Robert's 7 Latin name for Fawn-coloured Lark has changed from Mirafra africanoides in Robert's 6 to Calendulauda africanoides

The map of the Kruger you see on this page shows the areas (coloured orange) where this bird has been identified. The basic information was provided by the Avian Demographic Unit based at UCT and I created the maps from that information ... the green dots show the locations of the various Kruger National Park Rest Camps

egyptian goose Kruger National Park birds The Egyptian Goose is neither Endemic or near Endemic to the Kruger National Park. It is however a common resident

In terms of distribution of the Egyptian Goose in the Kruger National Park you may not see it in all areas. Egyptian Goose : see above distribution map.

The Egyptian Goose.

Identification assistance for this avian species ...

One of the first indicators to take note of when trying to identify a bird is it relative size. For example how big is the bird compared to a well known familiar bird. The Egyptian Goose is a largish bird bigger than a Pied Crow. The height of the Egyptian Goose is about 75 cms and its weight is about 2350 gms

The male and female Egyptian Goose have the same plumage and colours

  • Head is brown.
  • Eye is orange.
  • Bill is pink.
  • Throat is white.
  • Back is black.
  • Legs are pink.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.

Main diet items for this bird ...

The Egyptian Goose feeds in or around water mainly

Invertebrates

Seeds

Aquatic life forms

Breeding and nesting habits for this bird ...

The Egyptian Goose is monogamous unless its mate dies. In the event of a partner dying Alopochen aegyptiaca will seek out a new mate

The nesting habit of Egyptian Goose is to create the nest on the ground. The bird lays eggs which are white in colour and number between 1 to 22

Habitat and flocking behaviour for this bird ...

The preferred habitats for Egyptian Goose are: wetlands and riverine areas

You will normally see the Egyptian Goose in pairs or flocks and not as single birds.

Names of this avian species in other languages ...

Xhosa ... Ilowe

Zulu ... iLongwe

Afrikaans ...Kolgans

German ... Nilgans

Portuguese ... Ganso do Egipto

French ... Ouette d'gypte

Dutch ... Nijlgans

First bird in list | Previous bird viewed | Next KNP bird | Last bird in list

For in-depth birding information please refer to these authoritative avian references ...

Robert's 7th edition number ... 102

The main reference source for this data was "Roberts - Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition" . Other references were "Newmans Birds of the Kruger Park" by Keith Newman published circa 1980 . Names in foreign languages were obtained from the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town website , www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za