1, homesickness

The ancients often saw geese, flying north in spring and south in autumn. In the eyes of the ancients, geese always seemed to fly in the sky, just like travelers, always on the road, wandering from place to place. Therefore, the image of the wild goose is associated with the sadness and homesickness of the journey.

2, said brothers and sisters

In addition to expressing feelings of wandering and homesickness, geese are also usually used to express brothers and sisters, because geese are usually arranged in a certain order or in the word "people" when flying in the sky. Therefore, there are usually the sayings of flying geese and goose sequence, just like the order of brothers and sisters, so the image of "goose" in ancient poetry also has the meaning of brothers and sisters.

3, referring to letters

The reason why the image of the wild goose is "a letter" comes from the story of Su Wu's herding sheep. It is said that Su Wu and Su Wu were detained when they went to the Xiongnu, and the Xiongnu nobles repeatedly threatened to induce them to surrender, but Su Wu did not give in. The Xiongnu exiled Su Wu to the lonely Lake Baikal, and Su Wu still wanted to return to the Han Dynasty.

When the Emperor Han knew about it, he sent envoys to the Huns to be important people, reprimanding the Huns for banishing Su Wu. At first, the Huns refused to admit it, but the messenger lied to him that Su Wu tied the letter to the goose's leg and told us. Since then, the image of wild goose has been associated with letters.

Extended data:

Every autumn and winter, geese fly to the south of China in droves from their hometown of Siberia for the winter. The next spring, the geese will return to Siberia to lay eggs and breed again after a long flight. Geese can fly at a high speed, ranging from 68 to 90 kilometers per hour, and the long journey of thousands of kilometers will take a month or two.

During the long journey, the geese are well organized, and they are often arranged in herringbone or zigzag. As they walk, they keep making "honk, honk" calls. This call of geese plays a signal role in caring for each other, calling, taking off and stopping.

Why do geese fly south?

The geese fly south to spend the winter in the south, which has a tropical climate, warmer than the north, and more food than the north. In winter in the northern hemisphere, when the weather is cold, plants will also go into dormancy, resulting in less food sources. In order to give birth to them, they can only be forced to fly to areas with abundant plants in the south.

Wild geese belong to migratory birds, which generally have migratory habits and regularly travel between wintering areas and breeding areas with seasonal changes. The group is large, the time and place of coming and going are very regular, and there are fixed wintering places, breeding places and migration places.

What is a wild goose?

Wild geese, also known as wild geese, swans and large migratory birds, are national second-class protected animals. Goose symbolizes faithful love, and it is also a symbol of credit and loyalty. Common geese are Hongyan, Grey Goose, Bean Goose and White Goose. The geese team consists of 6 or multiples of 6, and the geese group is the aggregation of some families or some groups.

swan goose

It is a large waterfowl with a body length of about 90 cm and a weight of 2.8-5 kg. The mouth is black, the body color is light grayish brown, the top of the head is dark brown to the back neck, and the front neck is nearly white. In the distance, the top of the head and the back neck look black, and the front neck is nearly white.

Grey goose

It is a kind of wild goose commonly known among the people. Grey goose is a big bird with a weight of one. When flying, the wings flap hard, the flapping frequency is high, and the neck is long. Legs are located at the central fulcrum of the body and can walk freely. It has a flat beak and serrated edges, which helps to filter food.

bean goose

In China, it is a winter migratory bird, which belongs to the third protected animal in the country, that is, the terrestrial wild animals that are beneficial or have important economic and scientific research value under state protection. Bean geese fly with their wings and play for food, forming a beautiful ecological landscape.