Cackling goose some quarters; Richard Banks of the AOU urges caution before any of Hanson's proposals are accepted. Cackling goose The cackling goose ("Branta hutchinsii") is a North American bird of the genus "Branta" of black geese, which contains species with largely black plumage, distinguishing them from the grey "Anser" species. The black head and neck with white "chinstrap" distinguish this goose from all other geese except the larger Canada goose ("Branta canadensis") and the similarly sized barnacle goose ("B. leucopsis"). There are up to 5 subspecies of cackling goose, of varying sizes and plumage details. The female looks virtually identical but
Branta correctly assigned – meaning that the genus "Anser" was once much more widespread than today and that it coexisted with "Branta" in freshwater habitat which it today does only most rarely – is not clear. Especially in the case of "B. dickeyi" and "B. howardae", doubts have been expressed about its correct generic assignment. The former ""Branta" minuscula" is now placed with the prehistoric American shelducks, "Anabernicula". On the other hand, a goose fossil from the Early-Middle Pleistocene of El Salvador is highly similar to "Anser" and given its age and biogeography it is likely to belong to that genus