Brant
Branta bernicla

Brants are winter-loving waterfowl that breed in the high Arctic and migrate to the Chesapeake region during winter

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A brant stands in green grass with its black head and neck leaning slightly forward.
Brants will search for food in the grass as well as on the water. (Photo courtesy of alexey_nesmelov/iNaturalist CC BY-NC, toned and cropped)

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Appearance

Brants are small geese with black heads, black beaks, black necks with a white “necklace” on it. Their bodies are a brown or grey-black body but their bellies and tail are white.

Feeding

Brants forage by grazing or by swimming into shallow water and tipping forward to reach aquatic vegetation.

Flight

Brants form tight swarm-like flocks that are less linear than Canada Geese.

Voice

Flocks give pleasing calls reminiscent of Sandhill Cranes, and the sounds carry for long distances.

Reproduction and life cycle

In the Arctic, where brants mate and nest, the geese lay 3-8 eggs that are incubated by females for around 24 days. Young leave the nest within 1-2 days after hatching and are tended to by both parents. In the long daylight of the Arctic, young can feed at all hours and develop quickly, fledging at 40-50 days. They migrate to wintering areas as families (male, female and young) and even remain together as family units within the larger flock.

Did you know?

  • No other geese nest as far north as the Brant, and few migrate as far.
  • In the 1930’s, eelgrass, which Brants prefer eating, died off significantly in coastal areas. In response, brants began foraging other grass more upland.
  • Chesapeake hunters don’t often hunt brant because the waterfowl are notoriously poor-tasting.

Sources and additional information

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