Snow Goose Scenics and Flock Scenes

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Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge near Socorro, New Mexico is located at 5000 feet on
the western arm of the Central Flyway, the migration route on the eastern side of the Rocky Mountains.

Bosque del Apache is a wintering site for over 12,000 Sandhill Cranes and over 30,000 Snow Geese,
plus Eagles, Hawks, Falcons, Egrets, Herons, waterfowl, shorebirds, deer, coyotes, and other wildlife.
Bosque del Apache in the winter is one of the most fascinating wildlife locations in the United States.

Bosque del Apache First Light 2468

Thousands of Snow Geese cover the sky over Bosque del Apache at first light in late December.

Bosque del Apache Dawn 2219

Dawn breaks over the main pool near the Flight Deck at Bosque del Apache on a
cold winter morning, painting the cloud cover, the pool, and a group of Snow Geese.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout 2232

A cloud of Snow Geese fly over a flock placidly swimming on the main pond along with Sandhill Cranes
and ducks, as the first light of sunrise paints the sky on a thinly overcast morning at Bosque del Apache.

This image was taken at 85mm at 1/10 second to render the geese which
were moving across the frame as blurry, surrealistic objects in the dawn sky.

The morning flyout of the Snow Geese is one of Nature’s most spectacular scenes.
Tens of thousands of Snow Geese fill the sky in an instantaneous burst of flight. A group
of geese take off at nearly the same moment, flying within inches of each other, and as the
madly honking gaggle of geese fly over each pool, they set off the group of geese below.
This shot captures a gaggle of geese flying over a group of geese in the pool below,
just before that group breaks into flight to join them in their trip to the corn fields.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout 2246

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout 2251

A vast group of Snow Geese fly over the main pool at Bosque del Apache from the south at dawn.

Bosque Snow Geese at Dawn 5499

A group of Snow Geese fly in to the main pond to join their fellows at dawn.
They stay for a while, discussing strategy, then fly out again to the corn fields.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout 2735

Thousands of Snow Geese fly over the main pond at Bosque del Apache at dawn in mid-December.

Bosque del Apache Dawn 6492 pano

A panorama crop of the main pool at Bosque del Apache at dawn.
Sandhill Cranes are beginning to wake after spending the night in the pond.

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Bosque del Apache Dawn X8717

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout X8721

At dawn over the main pond south of the Flight Deck, the sun paints the low clouds in the east
red and gold as thousands of Snow Geese begin to fly in from the southeast over the Rio Grande.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout X8725

As the approaching Snow Geese reach the pool, geese in the pond break into flight.
These images were taken at 1/10 second, giving the geese a surrealistic appearance.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout X8726

Thousands of Snow Geese fly over the main pond at Bosque del Apache at dawn in late December.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout X8728

Dawn flyout of the Snow Geese over the main pond at Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge.

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout X8730

Bosque del Apache Dawn Flyout X8732

Two wider angle images taken as the last geese fly over the main pond on a cold mid-December morning.

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New Mexico Sunrise X6762

Snow Geese fly high in a sky painted by a magnificent New Mexico sunrise over
the Ladd Gordon Waterfowl Complex north of Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge.

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout 1685

A flock of Snow Geese bursts into the sky at dawn, honking in harmony as they fly.

Snow Geese are among the most populous birds in North America, and gather in huge flocks.
They breed in colonies in the arctic and subarctic tundra of Canada and north Alaska, migrating
distances of more than 3000 miles in the spring and fall. Lesser Snow Geese migrate down the
Pacific and Central Flyways to wintering areas in the Great Plains, Texas, New Mexico, Mexico
and California (Greater Snow Geese winter along the mid-Atlantic coast and the Carolinas).

Snow Geese have been divided into two subspecies based on size and geography, but
size overlap has caused some experts to question the division into Lesser and Greater.

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout 3879 16x9

Thousands of Snow Geese burst into flight at dawn over the main pool at Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge.

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout 6391

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout 6398

Snow Geese silhouetted against the sky at dawn on a cold clear morning in mid-December.
These two images were taken with an 85mm telephoto lens for more definition of individuals.

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout 4476

Snow Geese in silhouette and the first light of sunrise paint the sky over the main pond at Bosque del Apache.

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout HS8386

A cloud of Snow Geese passes in front of the Chupadera Mountains at dawn
over a pond at the Ladd Gordon Waterfowl Complex north of Bosque del Apache.

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Snow Geese at Dawn 6417 16x9

Snow Geese on a Crane Pool at dawn in mid-December.

Snow Geese at Dawn 6435

Snow Geese at Dawn 6440

Snow Geese fly over a group of their fellows in a Crane Pool as the sunrise paints the Chupadera Mountains.

Snow Geese Dawn Flyout 6449 16x9

The last stragglers of the previous group finally convinced the geese on the Crane Pool that it is time to fly to the farm fields.

Bosque del Apache Sunrise 3887

A golden sunrise illuminates a flock of Snow Geese in
the main pool at Bosque del Apache in mid-December.

Snow Geese at Sunrise X6407

Snow Geese fly over sleeping comrades huddling for
warmth on a brutally cold February morning at sunrise.

Snow Geese at Sunrise 1710

A flock of Snow Geese at sunrise on the main pond at Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico.

Bosque Snow Geese at Sunrise HS1065

Snow Geese fly over the Cottonwoods at sunrise in
January, with the Chupadera Mountains in the distance.

Bosque Snow Geese at Sunrise X3501

A closeup of Snow Geese flying by in December, as the
geese and a mist over the Chupaderas reflect the sunrise.

Snow Geese at Sunrise 2328 16x9

Snow Geese landing on a Crane Pool at sunrise in mid-December.

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Bosque Crane Pool at Sunrise 3264

Snow Geese and Sandhill Cranes on a Crane Pool as the light strikes the Chupaderas at sunrise in mid-December.

Bosque Crane Pool at Sunrise 6372

The Crane Pool is painted by the soft light reflecting from the Chupadera Mountains at sunrise on a cold January morning.

Snow Geese at Dawn 3020

Snow Geese landing in front of a group of Sandhill Cranes at dawn in a Crane Pool
which reflects the mauve color of the impending sunrise on a mid-December morning.

Snow Geese Sunrise Flyout 3065

Snow Geese leave a Crane Pool just as the sun begins to hit the Chupadera Mountains in mid-December.

Snow Geese and Cranes at Sunrise 3529 16x9

Snow Geese and Sandhill Cranes on a Crane Pool at sunrise in mid-December.

Snow Geese Morning Flyout 2290

Snow Geese on one of the Crane Pools react to a
group flying in from the east by bursting into the air.

Snow Geese Sunrise Flyout 2780

Snow Geese heading for the farm fields at
Bosque del Apache in a dense cloud at sunrise.

Snow Geese Sunrise Flyout 2764

A rear angle shot of Snow Geese leaving for the farm fields on a misty mid-December morning.

Snow Geese feed in grain fields during the winter. At Bosque del Apache, farm fields are maintained
near the wetlands that the geese and cranes use for overnight refuge, and each morning thousands of
geese and cranes fly out to the farm fields to feed on grain grown each summer for the wintering birds.

Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
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Snow Geese at Sunrise HS8401

A dense flock of Snow Geese including Blue morphs and Ross’s Geese at Ladd Gordon Waterfowl Complex.

Snow Geese at Sunrise HS8408

Two Snow Geese fly over a flock of their fellows at Ladd Gordon Waterfowl Complex north of Bosque del Apache.

Snow Geese at Sunrise HS8427

Snow Geese at Sunrise HS8428

A flock of Snow Geese at sunrise at Ladd Gordon, with a few individuals heading off to the farm fields.

Snow Geese at Sunrise HS8433

A small group of Snow Geese fly over a dense flock at sunrise, at Ladd Gordon Waterfowl Complex, NM.

Snow Geese Bosque Farm Fields 2169

Snow Geese Mallards Bosque Farm Fields 2193

Snow Geese and Mallards fly over a dense flock in the farm fields at Bosque del Apache Wildlife Refuge.

Snow Geese Bosque Farm Fields 2960

Snow Geese fly over a Sandhill Crane in the Bosque del Apache farm fields, late afternoon in mid-December.

Snow Geese and Cranes Farm Field X6438

Snow Geese and Sandhill Cranes in the farm fields of Bosque del Apache in the late afternoon in February.

Snow Geese and Cranes Farm Field HS8360 16x9

Detail of Snow Geese and Sandhill Cranes in the Bosque del Apache farm fields in the late afternoon in February.

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Snow Geese Flurry Farm Field X6442

A blizzard of Snow Geese over a farm field at Bosque del Apache in the late afternoon in February.

Snow Geese Sunset Fly-in 3071

Detail of a dense group of Snow Geese flying in to the main pool at sunset in mid-December.

Snow Geese Sunset Fly-in 3072 16x9

Snow Geese flying in extremely close formation at sunset over the main pool at Bosque del Apache.

Snow Geese Sunset Fly-in 3073

It is difficult to believe that the Snow Geese never collide, as some individuals are only inches apart.

Snow Geese Sunset Fly-in 3074

Snow Geese Sunset Fly-in 3076

A thundering herd of Snow Geese flying in at sunset from the farm fields at Bosque del Apache.

Snow Geese Sunset Fly-in 5925

Snow Geese floating in for a landing at sunset on the main pool at Bosque del Apache in late February.

Snow Geese Sunset Landing 3056

Snow Geese floating in for a landing at sunset on the main pool at Bosque del Apache in mid-December.

Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
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Snow Geese Moon X4031

Snow Geese fly in front of the moon at sunset in early December.

This is one of three available images of this scene.

Bosque Snow Geese at Sunset X3431

Bosque Snow Geese at Sunset X3480

A series of shots of Snow Geese settling on the main pool at Bosque del Apache just before sunset.

Bosque Snow Geese at Sunset X3432 pano

A panorama crop of Snow Geese and Sandhill Cranes on the main pool at Bosque del Apache near sunset.

Snow Geese Dusk Fly-in 5436 16x9

Snow Geese flying in formation over the main pool just after sunset in mid-December.

Snow Geese Dusk Landing 3615

Snow Geese float in for a landing on the main pond just after sunset in mid-December.

Snow Geese Dusk Landing 5453

Snow Geese floating in for a landing on the main pond, which reflects mauve light bouncing off low clouds at dusk.

Ladd Gordon Snow Geese at Sunset HS8379

A formation of Snow Geese in front of a pink cloud at sunset over Ladd Gordon Waterfowl Complex.

Images in this section are in a number of different Galleries on the Photoshelter website.
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There are 5 Galleries in the Photoshelter Snow Goose Collection

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