tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3284974424559143648.post759948856685930622..comments2023-05-11T05:13:52.835-07:00Comments on The Valley Ripple: Reminiscing Among Swans…T.M.Johnsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/05918557389921159736noreply@blogger.comBlogger2125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3284974424559143648.post-89060642141636297222013-12-05T18:16:51.808-08:002013-12-05T18:16:51.808-08:00The Valley is a favorite haunt of birders. I met t...The Valley is a favorite haunt of birders. I met two gentlemen a couple years back who were observing the Valley swans and talked a bit with them. You are correct about the two species of swans: trumpeters and tundras (aka "whistler/Bewick's swan" swan). The birders told me the two species often feed together but an observer would need a spotting scope to distinguish between the two (apparently the tundra swan has a yellow "beauty mark" at the base of its beak). <br /><br />Interestingly, my Birds of Washington pictorial field guide does not include the trumpeter swan, either in photo or checklist. The snow goose, however, is featured in both. Trumpeters and tundras look pretty much the same in flight...long necks (a bit excessive, in my opinion) and the black legs and feet. Neither swan species has black wing tips--a distinct marking in the snow goose. The three strangers I saw had the black wingtips and were definitely not swans.<br /><br />The wintering swans are quite an attraction in the Valley; folks are amazed to see so many big, white birds just roaming around in the cornfields. Because of the large numbers of wintering swans, the PUD has installed avian diverters on the highline wires in the Valley to make the lines more visible to the commuting swans. Thanks for reading, Mr. T. TMJ T.M.Johnsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05918557389921159736noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3284974424559143648.post-77341360432076027662013-12-05T08:38:19.015-08:002013-12-05T08:38:19.015-08:00Thank you for the wonderful book review. Your &quo...Thank you for the wonderful book review. Your "Snow Geese" may been another species of swan. I learned from a bee store customer a year or two back that we have two similar species of swans wintering in the Snohomish Valley. The Trumpeter Swans are the larger and more numerous birds and the Whistling Swans the smaller. He was a professional waterfowl biologist and said it is hard to distinguish between the two species from a distance. I looked in my bird books for more information. One book listed both Trumpeter and Whistling Swans as wintering in our area. A second book listed Trumpeter Swans and Tundra Swans, which may be an alternate name for Whistling Swans. Whatever the name of the smaller swan species that winters in our valley, both books indicated that they have a goose-like call. I didn't mean to ruin the lead-in to the book review, but I know you are a stickler for accuracy.Jimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09318854221959043722noreply@blogger.com