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
Canada goose which contains species with largely black plumage, distinguishing them from the grey species of the genus "Anser". "Branta" is a Latinised form of Old Norse "Brandgás", "burnt (black) goose" and the specific epithet "canadensis" is a New Latin word meaning "from Canada". According to the "Oxford English Dictionary", the first citation for the 'Canada goose' dates back to 1772. The Canada goose is also colloquially referred to as the "Canadian goose". The cackling goose was originally considered to be the same species or a subspecies of the Canada goose, but in July 2004, the American Ornithologists' Union's Committee on Classification