[birdky] FYI: Swan photos
- From: "Palmer-Ball, Brainard (EPPC OOS KNPC)" <Brainard.Palmer-Ball@xxxxxx>
- To: "BIRDKY" <birdky@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Thu, 24 Jan 2008 12:01:11 -0500
Gary Ritchison has been kind enough to post 3 photos of the two imm.
swans that were photographed at London by Wendi Allen of the London Bird
Club on 17 January 2008. The photos can be found at the following link:
http://www.biology.eku.edu/kos/tundra_swans.htm
It appears that these two birds could be the same two photographed 8
January 2008 on Lake Cumberland at General Burside Island State Park,
Pulaski County, by Roseanna Denton. See the link on Stephen Stedman's
Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region web site at:
http://iweb.tntech.edu/sstedman/UCRBirdReportWinter2007-2008.htm
Scroll down to Tundra Swan and click on the PHOTO link next to
Roseanna's intitials.
I'm about as confused as anyone can be about immature swan ID [seemingly
a perpetual status, unfortunately], but from what I know the
identification of these two birds as Trumpeter is problematic because
they still have mottled bills (indicating that they are theoretically
2007 hatch year birds), but they already have an essentially all-white
plumage. In looking at the images again since my last post, I've shifted
back into the "they look like Trumpeter Swan" mode because I noted that
the "smooth" look to the forehead interface between the white feathering
and the black bill of the one bird that is looking at the photographer
seems to be an illusion created by some dark staining at the point of
the angle; if you compare the two birds, you'll find that one has a
forehead that looks more angled like a Trumpeter. Also, if you look at
Roseanna's photo, it *appears* that this same stain *might* be on the
bird on the right, possibly confirming that they are the same two birds.
Again, the Sibley ID site with description of this character is at the
following link:
http://www.sibleyguides.com/swans.htm
bpb, Frankfort
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