Giant African Brown Geese

     Heathcliff is an African Goose Gander or male.  His mate, Gertrude can be seen sitting on eggs in the photo to the right and in the center of the page.  These beautiful birds are owned by Bill Braden of Land of Tobe Poultry.

  Another photo of Heathcliff guarding the nest of his mate Gertrude.

More African Geese

      The African goose, like the Chinese goose, drives from the Swan goose of Southeast Asia.  As a descendant of an Asian waterfowl, the name 'African Goose' is misleading. 
     The African Goose arrived in th United States in the middle of the 19th century.  Mr.Dave Holderread, a leading waterfowl expert, believes that the African Goose is a pure extract from the Swan goose.  The physical differances between the African and Chinese geese are thought to be strictly the result of selective breeding. 
     The African is considered to be one of the gentilest breeds of domestic geese.  It is a very cold hardy bird, although its head knob can be subject to frostbite.  These geese are fair layers and are more known for producing tasty, lean meat.   The African Goose was accepted into the American Poultry Association in 1874.