Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Ross's Goose (Chen rossii)

Ross's Goose [lateral view of adult]. Photograph Credit: Roseanna M. Denton; Conley Bottom, Lake Cumberland, Wayne County, Kentucky; 19 December 2006.

Abundance: Very Uncommon during late fall, winter, and early spring; 27 records in 15 Regional counties, 4 in Kentucky and 11 in Tennessee (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts are too few to determine a trend in the population wintering in, or migrating through, the Region (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Winter Resident, but most records involve birds present less than a week, so Transient may be a better status for this goose; photographs (see above and links below).

Regional High Count: 4 (4 December 2008; Barren River Reservoir, Barren County, Kentucky; David L. Roemer).

Information on Records: 

26 November 1998–3 January 1999 (1—immature) Boring Pond and City Lake Natural Area, Putnam County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Barbara H. Stedman et al.; Fekel 1999a; Welsh 1999a; Stedman 1999b), a CBC (count week) record.

17/20 April 2002 (1—adult) Stites farm, Liberty Church Rd., Putnam County, Tennessee (John and Evelyne Stites, Stephen J. Stedman photo/Daniel L. Combs; Casteel 2002c).

30 November 2003 (1—adult) Southeastern Tennessee State Correctional Facility, Bledsoe County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Winston A. Walden; Knight 2004a).

12–24 January 2004 (1–2) Swafford Pond, Bledsoe County, Tennessee (Kevin Calhoon, m. ob.; Knight 2004b), possibly a continuation of the preceding record.

27 January 2004 (3) Student's Home Rd., DeKalb County, Tennessee (Judy C. Fuson, Carol D. Williams photo; Casteel 2004b), photo (27 January 2004, Carol D. Williams).

22 February 2004 (1) Intersection Rts. 87 and 921, Barren County, Kentucky (Stephen J. Stedman, Winston A. Walden; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2004b).

13–14 January 2005 (1) Rt. 83, DeKalb County, Tennessee (Carol D. Williams photo, Judy C. Fuson photo).

4–11 December 2005 (1—juvenile) Twin Lakes, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton photo; Palmer-Ball and McNeeley 2006b), photo.

19 December 2006 (1—adult) Conley Bottom, Wayne County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton photo [see above]).

22 January 2007 (2—age unknown) Allen's Ferry Rd., DeKalb County, Tennessee (Carol D. Williams, Judy C. Fuson photos [of limited clarity], Michael J. Hawkins).

4 & 7 March 2008 (1) Cooley's Pond, Wayne County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton photo).

25–28 March 2008 (1) West Ridge Rd. near Eubank, Pulaski County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton).

5 April 2008 (1) Jaybird Rd., Overton County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman photo).

4 December 2008 (4) Mason's Island, Barren River Reservoir, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer photo).

7 February 2009 (3—adults) Stone's Rd., Morgan County, Tennessee, and Catfish Farm Rd., Fentress County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman, Edmund K. LeGrand photo).

17 March 2009 (1) River Hill Rd., White County, Tennessee (Douglas A. Downs photo).

20 November 2010 (1—adult) Miller Pond, Russell County, Kentucky (Roseanna M. Denton photo, Arlene M. Morton, Granville Cox).

23 November 2010 (2—with flying flock of 40 Snow Geese) Barren River Reservoir, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer).

23–30 January 2012 (1—adult) Student's Home Rd., DeKalb County, Tennessee (Judy C. Fuson photo).

27 December 2012 (3—2 adults and 1 immature) Berry Pond, Barren County, Kentucky (David L. Roemer photo, David R. Brown, and Stephen J. Stedman).

6 February 2014 (3) Moss Rd., Putnam County, Tennessee (Jonathan Mills photo).

19 March 2014 (2) Lake Tansi, Cumberland County, Tennessee (Edmund K. LeGrand photo).

14–19 November 2014 (1) Celina Wastewater Treatment Plant, Celina, Clay County, Tennessee (Terry M. Campbell photo), an eBird record.

4 December 2014 (2) Defeated Creek Recreational Area, Smith County, Tennessee (Chris Agee photo), an eBird record

17 January–21 February 2015 (1) McWhirter Farm and Lake Karen, Warren County, Tennessee (Susan N. McWhirter, N. P. "Mac" McWhirter), an eBird record.

25 January 2015 (1) Rt. 111 just north of intersection with Jaybird Rd., Overton County, Tennessee (Edmund K. LeGrand, Stephen J. Stedman photo), an eBird record.

18 February 2017 (2) Fox Chase Pond, Wayne County, Kentucky (Ray Bontrager photo), and eBird record.

5 March 2017 (1—possibly a hybird) Lake Elizabeth, Oneida, Scott County, Tennessee (Stephen J. Stedman photo; possibly the same bird reported and photographed previosuly by Betty Sue Dunn)..

Regional Extreme Dates:

    Early Fall: 14 November 2014 (Clay County, Tennessee; Terry M. Campbell).

    Late Spring: 20 April 2002 (Putnam County, Tennessee; Daniel L. Combs; Casteel 2002c).

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: Not registered on any of 125 checklists during the 2003 YardWatch, but, surprisingly, this rare goose was registered once during the 2004 YardWatch; this lone registration among 206 checklists submitted during 2004 is indicative of the species' Regional rarity, as well as its unlikelihood of occurrence in yards and neighborhoods around the Region.

Habitat: Open rural and agricultural areas with small- to medium-sized ponds.

Remarks: Often associates with Canada Geese, as was the case for at least six of the sightings noted above, and sometimes with Snow Geese, true for at least one record above.

    The April 2002 Putnam County, Tennessee, record took place very close to Jackson County, Tennessee, suggesting that the goose was probably present in that county as well.

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited