Trumpeter Swans
When you see a tagged bird, you can send the details in the to Birds Bander’s, and they will get back to you with information as to the age of the bird and where it was banded. these birds are migrating so it would be interesting to find out where they are from. https://www.pwrc.usgs.gov/BBL/bblretrv/
Within 24 hours I received two certificates which can be viewed as you scroll through the batch of swan photos.
Trumpeters were at one time hunted to the point of reducing its numbers significantly, they have now bounced back to a population world wide of about 18,000.
click here to view the certificate pdf
Tundra Swans #144
Tundra Swans are identifiable by a tiny yellow patch below their eyes, other than this they look a lot like Trumpeter Swans. These have a strong international population of about 300,000 and are doing well. They nest in the far north up in Alaska and Baffin Island, they are just passing through these parts after spending the winter in the south.
I met a nice birder with a powerful scope, through the scope we could clearly identify the yellow patch, however it was a cold day and my lens was only so powerful, trust me the yellow patches were there 🙂
This was a new bird for me, I had made a category for it which sat empty after I realized I had a case of mistaken it’s identity. So finally here is my first post of Tundra Swans.
Mute Swans
Driving along near Markdale… this white swan with the dark back ground looked pretty, so I took a photo. Is it wild? Likely.
Mute Swans “Teenagers”
A gorgeous night in Thornbury harbour, these young fellows seem to be out cruising for some action. As they mature their bills will turn bright orange.
The white line across the horizon it the ice line receding.
Mute Swans gather in the spring
Icy cold Georgian Bay
Trumpeter Swan
The water froze over the great lakes this past winter, so much so that more than 300 starving swans were taken to rehab centers to be fed. I went with my friend Robert to Hamilton Harbour with two 50 pound bags of corn. The swan in the photo is racing to the corn aggressively. We spread it out along the ice so all kinds of water fowl could grab some.
Whooper Swan
The Whooper Swan is the national bird of Finland. It is found off the coast of Alaska and some odd sightings of escaped zoo birds in Ontario.