Canada Goose with young at the Hagenbeck Zoo, Hamburg (Germany)

The Canada Goose (Branta canadensis), sometimes called Canadian Goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is occasionally found during migration across the Atlantic in northern Europe. They have a long black neck and head, white chin strap, brown-gray body, a white U-shaped rump band and pale under parts. Their bill, tail and feet are black, with the larger species having a loud and deep musical honk-honk. The Canada Goose is a grazer who feeds below the water surface and on land. Their diet includes roots, tubers, algae, cattails, small aquatic animals, seeds, grains, grass and crops. They mate for life and pairs remain together throughout the year with each bird choosing a mate of appropriate size with the male being slightly larger. The lifespan in the wild of geese who survive to adulthood ranges from 10 to 24 years.

The Hagenbeck Zoo (Tierpark Hagenbeck) is a zoo in Stellingen, Hamburg, Germany. The collection began in 1863 with animals that belonged to Carl Hagenbeck Sr. (1810–1887), a fishmonger who became an amateur animal collector. The park itself was founded by Carl Hagenbeck Jr. (1844–1913) in 1907 and it is still operated and owned by the Hagenbeck family today. It is known for being the first zoo to use open enclosures surrounded by moats, rather than barred cages, to better approximate animals' natural environments. Over the years, the zoo has gained a good reputation for successfully breeding rare and endangered species such as the Asian Elephant and the Siberian Tiger.