Bird blizzard: More than a million snow geese blot out the sky as they make epic journey to Arctic tundra

More than a million snow geese take flight over the skies 

of Missouri - creating the illusion of a blizzard - 

in these awe-inspiring pictures.

The spectacle was captured in Squaw Creek National Wildlife 

Refuge as the birds began their annual summer migration back 

to the Arctic tundra foundin Greenland, Canada, and Alaska.

Groups of birds numbering between 100 and 1,000 make 

the journey together alongside others, their swooping mass 

blotting out large swathes of sky.

Epic: The snow geese take flight at Squaw Creek National 

Wildlife Refuge in Missouri. 

More than a million birds take refuge there as they migrate north

Migrant: The birds breed in Greenland, Canada, 

Alaska and Siberia but summer in warmer climes throughout North America

Glorious: Groups of birds numbering between 100 and 1,000 

can make the journey together

Photographer Doug French, from Nebraska, captured the 

jaw-dropping scenes earlier this year.

He said: 'This flock of more than one million geese were 

seen leaving the refuge early in the morning at sun rise.

'At times more than 100,000 geese would erupt from the 

lake in a solid white and black wall of geese and the sound 

of their wing beats would drown out everything else.

'You could not see through these giant walls of geese.'

Veil: The snow geese take to the sky in their hundreds of thousands,

 forming a barrier that cannot be seen through

Photographer Doug French, from Nebraska, captured 

the scenes earlier this year

Tourists: Some vagrant geese make it as far afield as Scotland

Air traffic control: The area is known as the Central 

Flyway due to the high volume of birds. 

Right, a close-up of a snow goose in mid-flight

Flying symphony: In the background thousands of birds 

can be seen blanketing the surface of the lak

The area is popular with the lesser snow geese because they can feed on 

the abundant corn and sorghum. 

The photographer described the scenes as 'magnificent'

The area is popular with the lesser snow geese because its rich 

agricultural land provides an abundance of corn and sorghum.

After feeding in the area - known as the Central Flyway due 

to the high volume 

of birds - the geese eventually head north in April and May 

to their Arctic breeding grounds.

Mr French added: 'The spectacle of seeing this number of snow geese in one 

area was truly magnificent to see and hear.'

The birds mate for life, usually in their second year, 

although breeding does

 not usually start until the third year.

Snow goose females are strongly drawn to the place 

they hatched when they want to breed

Lake placid: The birds clump together on the surface 

of the lake

As well as being an incredible sight to behold, the sound 

the massed birds 

make is also said to be spine-tingling

Photographer Doug French said: 

'The spectacle of seeing this number of snow geese 

in one area was truly magnificent to see and hear'

Escape to the sun: Snow geese winter in warm parts 

of North America from southwestern British Columbia 

through parts of the United States to Mexico

Final approach: Two birds fly in to land in the floating crowd

He added: 'It is one of Mother Nature's must see events.'

Snow geese breed north of the timberline in Greenland, 

Canada, Alaska, and the northeastern tip of Siberia, 

and winters in warm parts of North America 

from southwestern British Columbia through parts 

of the United States to Mexico.

Occasionally some make their way to Europe. 

Snow Geese are visitors to the British Isles where they are seen 

regularly among flocks of Barnacle,

 Brent and Greenland white-fronted geese. 

There is also a feral population in Scotland. 

Snow geese nests often fall prey to Arctic foxes and 

skuas, a type of seabird

Formation: 

The snow geese take to the sky en masse

This incredible picture gives an impression of a blizzard 

as the birds swirl upwards

A bird searches for food (left) during the annual summer 

migration in Squaw Creek, Missouri. 

Bird feathers litter the ground having been shed by 

some of the one million snow geese 

Covered: The water is almost completely covered 

by the massed creatures

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The breeding population has increased by more 

than 300 per cent since the mid-1970s

Maelstrom: A chaotic scene as the birds rise into the sky as one

Snow Geese travel through the Central Flyway, 

across some of the richest farmland in America

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Soaring: The snow gooe often nests in colonies. 

The female selects a nest site and builds the nest on an area of high ground

Ballet: The graceful mass movements of the geese are a must-see spectacle for nature lovers

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