Home › All birds › Barnacle goose

The Barnacle goose (Branta leucopsis) is a bird found in Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, United Kingdom and Belgium. Arctic islands in summer; coastal fields and wetlands in winter. It eats leaves and other plant parts and seeds and nuts. The IUCN Red List lists it as Least Concern.

🏡 Where the Barnacle goose lives

Arctic islands in summer; coastal fields and wetlands in winter.

🍽️ What it eats

• 🌿 Leaves & plants90%
• 🌰 Seeds & nuts10%

A rough guide to its diet over a year. Source: EltonTraits (Wilman et al. 2014).

Conservation status

Hear the Barnacle goose

Recorded by Lars Edenius (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0), xeno-canto XC903305. Trimmed to a few seconds.

Questions about the Barnacle goose

Where does the Barnacle goose live?

The Barnacle goose lives in Sweden, Netherlands, Denmark, Norway, United Kingdom and Belgium. Arctic islands in summer; coastal fields and wetlands in winter.

What does the Barnacle goose eat?

leaves and other plant parts (about 90%), seeds and nuts (about 10%). These are rough shares of its diet over a year, from the EltonTraits database.

Is the Barnacle goose endangered?

There are plenty of these birds. Its IUCN Red List category is Least Concern.

More birds from Europe

• Tree pipit
• Cetti's warbler
• Yellow-legged gull
• Crested lark
• Marsh tit
• Red-breasted merganser

Sources: IUCN Red List (via Wikidata), EltonTraits 1.0 (Wilman et al. 2014), GBIF sightings for countries, Wikipedia. Last updated 2026-10-19.