Sunday, April 11, 2021

Trumpeter Swans!?

We drove to the next corner and actually turned and drove back through the wetland to see what else we could see, and so I'd be on the other side of the car.  The first thing we saw was a pair of swans, one sitting on a nest and one swimming nearby.

It certainly wasn't a very clear view, but I did get out the binocs and I could see that these were not the common Mute Swans; they had black beaks, not orange, so they were Tundra or Trumpeter Swans.  The Tundra Swans pass through southern Ontario in large numbers in late March, on their way to their nesting grounds in the Arctic, but the recently reintroduced Trumpeter Swans are still quite rare around here/

Trumpeter Swans, the largest waterfowl in the world, were almost extirpated from North America by the late 1800s, but thanks to Harry Lumsden, an MNR  biologist, a breeding program was established at the Wye Marsh in southern Ontario in the early '80s.  They have grown and established themselves in the wild, but I never expected them to nest around here.  So I assumed that these were the much more common Tundra Swan and put a post out on a local birding Facebook page.

Lo and behold Lynne Richardson, one of the leaders among the local birding community, and a much more accomplished birder than I, indicated that they would be Trumpeter Swans!  Pretty nice to see!  And thanks Lynne for identifying them.

We continued slowly down through the wetland, hoping at least to see a few ducks or a goose, but no luck.  We only had one sighting, a kayaker heading out for an early spring paddle.  Those swans certainly were the highlight here!


16 comments:

  1. how fun to see the trumpeter swans, i only see mute swans here. the nest looks to be huge, it would be nice to get a better look!! i tried to kayak several times...it just doesn't go well!!

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  2. Nice seeing the Swans in your area.
    We saw some last Fall but what type they were I have no idea.
    Great Pictures.
    Be Safe and Enjoy!

    It's about time.

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  3. What a treat to see the swans!!
    Looking forward to getting some kayaking in this year!!

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  4. It would be very interesting to establish whether these birds are breeding in your area. As the population grows there is ever wider dispersal.

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  5. What a treat to see them nesting too.

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  6. We have six trumpeter swans taken up residence at a bird sanctuary/conservation area just across the road from my in-laws. We popped by to see them yesterday. Lots of vehicles parked on the road having a look, but the swans don't seem to notice at all. Some idiot let their dogs out to go for a paddle in the pond though, stupid people. Thankfully the dogs didn't harass the swans, but still!

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  7. Good find on the swans, we don't have them down here --- hopefully some day.

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  8. You saw trumpeter swans!! And one nesting!!! You don't get to see ducks and geese too! Ha ha
    Lovely shots of them. :)

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  9. The only Swans I ever saw on nests were the domesticated ones in Stratford Ontario along the Avon River. You were very fortunate to see those rare Trumpeter Swans nesting.

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  10. Although I haven't seen swans at all close this year, others have. My pics form last year would indicate that they are one of these varieties.

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  11. Awesome! We don't see swans here, at least that I know of, and the last time I saw any was in England several years ago. Thanks for sharing.

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  12. How wonderful! I was hoping to see the swans in the Skagit Valley when I went last week, but we were too late. They've gone already. But I got to see yours, so thank you! :-)

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  13. That's good news. There seem to be lots of changes in bird distribution happening at the moment, some as a result of breeding programs but also some birds just spreading without any encouragement.

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  14. How lovely to see the swans.

    All the best Jan

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