Have you ever sen this on a Ross??

[Swamp Scooter]

I got a beautiful Ross I am going to put on the wall this last weekend. I know it is just a white bird with black wing tips but the reason is the bill is something I have never seen before. The edges around the part that goes in to the face are rough. I thought it was mud caked on at first but then I also noted a horn type thing on the top like a unicorn!!! About 1/4 of an inch or so high.

Has anyone ever seen this in the goose before? None of the hunters, or pros had. Do you think this is an odd ball bird or one that is so old and wise it got a characteristic almost never soon before? Any and all help would be nice. If is is just a deformity I may not mount it but if it signifies the age or something special I will for sure.

Even if it is just a freak of nature it was a fantastic bird to take and have the dog retrieve.

thanks for the help.

[big drift]

try and post up a pic i suspect it may be a cross with a muscovy never know.

big drift

[full force five]

I've seen it before, it looks like a big wart. Not every Ross has the warts on their upper bill but some do.

[jblabsnduck]

Never seen that but I did shoot a blue this year that looked like it had a big pinch of chew in its cheek

[Swamp Scooter]

FFF,

That is a good way of describing it. Kind of warty. It is not just on the top of the bill but surrounds the perimiter and is quite pronounced. Is this some intication of age? All the birds we were shooting were very mature and some down right old.

Thanks for the info and keep it coming. Not sure if it occurs often, if I would mount it.

[JerknPerchSD]

many ross's geese we shoot have what you describe. I've read that they are like warts

[hobbydog]

Ever see a honker with a bill like this?

[JerknPerchSD]

that is one messed up goose. I assume it must be some kind of birth defect. Too weird

[riverrat56]

I wonder if that goose wasn't shot at when it was younger and had just the front top of the bill hit by some BBB, or then again it probally was a birth defect.

[chasinredeyes]

I've heard that the "warty" appearance you describe is what snow goose hunters refer to as "rust". Apparently they gain this rust by feeding in the salt water while staging in Mexico, LA, AB, MS, etc...

I was in Nebraska for my spring break and almost EVERY Ross we shot had this "rust." Many of the snows and a couple of the blues had the same thing.

No scientific description, just what I have heard from numerous die hard white bird hunters.

[JerknPerchSD]

I guess I always thought that "rust" was the gold color on the face and bellies of them. Many of the early birds we shoot have this charactoristic. I've heard it's the saltwater staining the feathers

[BIGSCHLAG]

The wart like bumps are very common. They are almost always found on Adult males. They are never on Females. Just because a bill has lots of warty bumps does not mean it is older. You can not age them by this. However males younger than 1 year really don't show them. I used to raise Ross geese years ago. Also even though Ross are related to snows, They never get the warty bumps. The bird you shot just must had the warty bumps to the extreme. Remember that even though they all look alike they are all very distinct individuals when you start looking close.