Wild goose ID (1 Viewer)

These birds caused a bit of a stir here in the Bradford (UK)area.
One is a 1st year Pink-footed Goose -anser brachyrhynchus(PFG) the other was/is open for debate. They both stayed in our area for about 5 days feeding in a field, loosely associated with a small flock of Canada Geese -branta canadensis.
Unfortunately the weather was always misty and murky giving bad lighting and making bare parts colouration that bit more difficult to determine. The PFG is the smaller of the two and is the right hand bird(when both are included). The best images taken have been pasted together to create a collage. The leg colour of the larger bird varied greatly in the poor light but as the day brightened(?) they appeared to me as orange and the bill semed a different colour to that of the PFG, even when seen side by side in the same light.
However as people arrived to see them, one mans orange was anothers pink! The debate is still running in some quarters, so i thought I'd post the image and see what opinions came back.
I would appreciate your views and especially the reasons for your ID, I know the birds are a bit distant and the light is bad but just imagine your looking down my scope!
cheers Mark.

Mark,
Is there a possibility of Bean x Greylag hybridisation for this goose ?

Tony

TOny,
No idea if there's a chance of hybridisation, it's a realm of possibility that we've all stayed way from with that being such a headache! Is there owt on hybridisation in literature that I might be able to read ?

Mark

There must be somewhere, but I don't think I have anything myself - I just looked through the pix in 'Wildfowl' and compared them with your pic.

Tony

From the frosted looking back & amount of white showing on the side. I would say it was an adult Pink Footed Goose.
The leg colour does vary in this species. It is much too short in the neck for a Bean Goose.

That is my opinon anyway.

CJ

"It is much too short in the neck for a Bean Goose."
Certainly for nominate fabalis("Taiga Bean Goose"),but I think that it may well be a Bean of the race rossicus("Tundra Bean Goose"),which has a shorter neck than Taiga,and also a bill shape/pattern more similar to Pink-foot.
The distinct pale fringes to the tertials are good for all races of Bean,as are the orange legs.
Can't say for definite from these shots,though!Sorry!
Harry

I spotted a PFG at Gib Point last year mixing with a flock of Brent and, as I understand, they are quit prone to "mixing it" with other species . . . usually singly.

A pity about the lighting!

Al