24 November 2006 - Mouth of Pilarcitos Creek Mouth, Half Moon Bay, San Mateo County, California. These two geese have been acting like pals for several days at this location. The Canada Goose seems to be slightly larger than the Snow Goose, and very dark overall. The black on the neck blends with the dark-brown breast and belly. Some chestnut color is evident on the upperparts. The bill looks fairly long, and forehead is fairly flat suggesting a form of Canada Goose rather than the recently split Cackling Goose (Branta hutchinsii). It has been suggested that this bird may be a "Dusky" Canada Goose (B. c. occidentalis). Another possibility is the Vancouver Canada Goose (B. c. fulva). The two are probably not reliably separable in the field. Either way it is well south of its normal range. Olympus D-550z / Nikon FieldScope 3 / 30XWA (hand-held - no adapter).