Information on African Geese - facts and pictures
African geese are not from Africa! They are the same colour as the
Chinese goose, and originated in SE China where they are called the
'Lion Head' . Like the Brown Chinese,
they are the same colour as the wild swan goose - a most attractive
colour with a brown stripe down the back of the neck in contrast to
the cream throat. The body feathers are ashy brown, edged with a
lighter shade.
They were imported into the USA in the nineteenth century, and
reached Britain as the 'Hong Kong' goose in Victorian times. Good
examples of the African were more or less lost in the UK by the 20th
century. Most Africans here now come from birds imported from the
USA from the 1970s onwards.
Exhibition Africans are imposing birds, ganders standing one
metre tall. However, hand reared, they are very tame. The large
head, with a stout bill, carries a crescent-shaped dewlap. The body
is large and quite long, but carried fairly upright giving the birds
their height. There is a great deal of variation in weight. Some
varieties are quite small, reaching only 16-20 lbs. Big exhibition
birds in the UK and the USA reach 26 lbs - the same as their stated
weight in SE China.
Africans have also been bred in white and are similar to the Russian
Kholmogorsk goose. In recent years the buff gene has been introduced
from the American Buff goose and the blue gene from the Steinbacher.
We have been breeders of African geese for many years and
sometimes have birds for sale, from pet to exhibition quality.
Brief facts on keeping geese
Book about geese
Note that all photographs and text on this website belong
to
Chris & Mike Ashton. They should not be reproduced
without our permission i.e. they should not be used for
advertising or commercial purposes.
Please telephone 07966 993869 for availability of books or stock
We are in the UK near Shrewsbury on the border of England
and Wales.
We breed a limited quantity of pure breeds of domestic geese and
Indian Runners and Abacot Rangers each year. We do not
sell hatching eggs.
