Łukasz Ławicki, Tadeusz Stawarczyk
Ornis Polonica 2012, 53: 188–201
https://doi.org/10.12657/ornis.2012.3.2
Abstract: By the end 2011, 220 records (ca 383 individuals) of the Red-breasted Goose Branta ruficollis in Poland were made. Until the late 1980s the species was recorded only 11 times, but since 1990 it has been recorded annually with a clear increasing trend. Median number of observations in 1990–2005 was 4 records per year (range 1–12) and a significant increase occurred after 2005, when the median was 20 records per year (range 13–41). Most of the records was in western Poland (87%), mainly from Silesia (99 records) and Wielkopolska (40). The Red-breasted Geese were recorded in 125 places, mostly in the Barycz River Valley (47 records), Biebrza River Basin (13), Mietków Reservoir (11) and the Warta River Mouth NP (10). Red-breasted Geese were most frequently observed in autumn, with the peak in the third decade of October and the first decade of November. In winter, they were observed in small numbers whereas in spring the highest numbers fell in the second and third decade of March. Most observations concerned single (75%) and adult (59%) birds. Red-breasted Geese were most frequently observed on fishponds (28%) and in farmland (27%), somewhat less frequently in river valleys (22%) and at dam reservoirs (18%). The large increase in numbers of the Red-breasted Geese noted in Poland in recent years is likely due to more numerous occurrence in Western Europe and higher observers activity in search of rare species in flocks of geese.
