Age indications/Does plumage turn grey with age?

[HeatherKellyB]

So I'm not sure if this belongs here or in genetics, but I'm posting here since the initial question came up regarding a goose. I remember reading that a Cayuga duck hen (not sure about drake as my Cayuga drake is still 100% iridescent black at 2+ years ~maybe it starts at a later age?) can start to grow feathers with visible white after each molt. With age every individual fowl will have experienced more molts. I know things are different for fowl than for humans, but as they age and go through more molts, do they lose their young vibrant colors/start showing white/graying in their feathers? I apologize if this is a silly question. I know a wild Canada Goose that has visited me often for well over 2 years now. Her eyebrows (feathers right over her eyes) seem to be more white. All of the areas where she's suffered trauma, her feathers are looking bleached however I suspect that once she molts she won't look so aged. I know that geese can live very long lives. If feather color isn't an indication to age, are there any indications of age? Thank you for your time. I really appreciate it

 

[Miss Lydia]

@Pyxis

 

[Iain Utah]

Interesting question. It made me go look at my flock carefully, as I have plenty of older birds. My cayugas had the most dramatic whitening and when my last female passed at 7yo, she was very white. My ancona ducks have lost most of their black saddle color by age 7-8yo, and there is whitening in face with my black muscovies as well. My 9yo+ africans have whitening around their beaks. However, my buff and grey dewlaps do not (and I have plenty between 8-12yo).

So it appears that black colors will wash out, but greys and buffs do not. It would be logical if the Canada goose's black colors also fade with age.

 

[Iain Utah]

I am correcting myself. As you can see from pics, all breeds can exhibit whitening. The first two pics are of my 9.5yo african goose, and like all my similar aged africans, she has a distinct white ring around entire beak. While my oldest grey dewlap goose (12yo) does not have any whitening, the two pictured grey dewlap geese are 10yo and have white speckling. Finally, my 11yo buff gander almost has a full white ring around beak.

 

[HeatherKellyB]

I am correcting myself. As you can see from pics, all breeds can exhibit whitening. The first two pics are of my 9.5yo african goose, and like all my similar aged africans, she has a distinct white ring around entire beak. While my oldest grey dewlap goose (12yo) does not have any whitening, the two pictured grey dewlap geese are 10yo and have white speckling. Finally, my 11yo buff gander almost has a full white ring around beak.View attachment 2815694View attachment 2815695View attachment 2815696View attachment 2815698View attachment 2815697

Thank you so much for your time and pictures. Your geese are so lovely. Such a beautiful property as well

 

[GranderTheGander]

The only thing I've noticed with goose ageing is becoming less waterproof. But maybe ya'll pay way more attention to feather coloring. How is Gooslyn doing?

 

[HeatherKellyB]

The only thing I've noticed with goose ageing is becoming less waterproof. But maybe ya'll pay way more attention to feather coloring. How is Gooslyn doing?

Hi there @GranderTheGander I hope you're doing well. You know that I definitely pay way too much attention I can't help it. Afterwards I'm always complaining about running out of time for this or that. In reality, I'm wasting too much time on the strangest things Gooslyn is doing well. Thank you for asking about her. She has started to gain more confidence whenever I'm beside her. Instead of flying or hopping off if any of the other 32 (she makes the flock total 33) geese try to intimidate or even nip at her, she's started nipping back and trying to stand her ground. She just leaves if her giant feeder (me) isn't there for backup. Her personality is really coming out more. She lost her balance the other day and bumped into my leg and that really scared her, but she quickly realized that there was no risk and I wasn't trying to touch her. I guess with the flock being so large now, she has to act different. That's the only reason I can think that she'd just start blossoming now after all of this time. Another really nice thing I've discovered is that the juveniles don't seem to bother her. I've counted at least 13 juveniles, I believe. The more I read, I'm beginning to think that I have more than one type of Canada Geese that visit. I think it'd be so neat to find out how old Gooslyn is. I guess it'd probably be difficult to figure out the age with a goose that's as battered as she is though.

 

[GranderTheGander]

Maybe Gooslyn is old. I forgot something important, though, about elderly ducks and geese--they get cataracts! I've seen it mostly with pekins and a couple of times with domestic geese. Unfortunately, that means they are blind in any eye with one. I made a pekin a pet once after she became old and her mate was killed. She ended up with cataracts in both eyes. As a pet, though, she did fine.

There was one park pekin who ended up blind, but I still could not catch her, because her mate was so good at warning her of dangers, as well as telling her where food was on the ground. She lived for months in the park, totally blind. There was a huge thunderstorm late one summer afternoon, though, and the next day I couldn't find her.

The only time I've seen juvenile geese go after older ones is when they are following their father in an attack. They actually never attacked the one being chased. As they get older, and get mates of their own, they get more confident. It depends on the goose. Some are way more aggressive than others. With gosling season coming to an end, geese tend to become less territorial and aggressive, and maybe that's why Gooslyn is no longer always on guard and has confidence to be a bit aggressive, too. It's nice she has become less cautious of you.

 

[Iain Utah]

Thanks! Now when I go out to hang with my birds, all I see is whitening around their beaks, since most of my group are reaching senior status.

I'm not sure I have seen lack of waterproofing generally, but I have seen females become less waterproof prior to annual molt. I have also seen cataracts in birds, but extremely uncommon.

 

[GranderTheGander]

So, Gooslyn never has a mate with her when the big flock is there, and they pick on her during mating/nesting season? That makes me wonder if Gooslyn isn't a gander. Geese supposedly mate for life, but it seems if a female lost her mate she would get another, because there always seems to be more males than females.