Pilgrim Geese are a breed of domestic goose. The origins of this breed are unclear, but they are thought to be either descended from stock in Europe

Europe

Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

, or developed from American

Americas

The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...

 stock during the Great Depression

Great Depression

The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...

 era.

Description

The breed is auto-sexing with distinct color differences between males (ganders) and females (geese) at hatching. Newly hatched ganders are light yellow and geese are grey. Adult Ganders are mostly white with some grey on the rump and occasionally with traces of grey on other parts of their bodies. Adult Geese are mostly grey and occasionally have traces of grey in their faces. Both Ganders and geese have a knobless orange bill

Beak

The beak, bill or rostrum is an external anatomical structure of birds which is used for eating and for grooming, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food, courtship and feeding young...

, and orange feet and shanks. Weight of the mature bird is about 13-14 pounds. The bird is an excellent table bird.

This breed of goose is listed as critical by the American Livestock Breeds Conservancy

American Livestock Breeds Conservancy

The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy is a nonprofit organization focused on preserving and promoting genetic diversity among rare breeds of livestock...

.