Nesting is often on cliffs close to glaciers. This gives protection from mammalian predators (mainly Arctic Fox). Three to six eggs are laid in early to mid May in Iceland, late May in Svalbard. Incubation lasts 26–27 days. On hatching, the goslings go with the parents on foot to the nearest lake. They fledge after about 56 days. Southbound migration is from mid September to early October, and northbound from mid April to early May.