barnacle goose

noun

barnacle goose

noun

Etymology Because this goose nests in the far north, Europeans never saw its chicks, and invented a theory that the goose barnacle is the larval form of the barnacle goose.

1

A black and white species of bird within the family Anatidae from the northern hemisphere, Branta leucopsis.

Entry derived from the Wiktionary, under licence CC BY-SA 4.0 — list of authors.