|
English
and Scientific names: |
Swan, sp.
|
|
Number
of individuals: |
1 subadult |
|
Locality:
LOUISIANA: |
Vermilion |
|
Specific
Locality: |
Sighted from Sham's Road, about 100 yards N of intersection with
Gladu Road. Bird was about 1/3-1/2 mile W of this spot. |
|
Date(s)
when observed: |
February 16, 2009 |
|
Time(s)
of day when observed: |
Mid-afternoon to late afternoon. |
|
Reporting
observer and address: |
Paul Conover |
|
Other observers
accompanying reporter who also identified the bird(s): |
Dave Patton |
|
Other observers who
independently identified the bird(s) |
This bird was originally spotted on 2/6/2009 by Joe Kleiman,
Carol Foil, and Karen Fay during a Winter Bird Atlas survey. Kleiman, who got
looks in flight, identified the bird
as a Tundra Swan. |
|
Light conditions
(position of bird in relation to shade and to direction and amount of light): |
Horrible. Sunny winter day with sun low to ground by this time
of day. The combination of the low sun in the direction we were looking
coupled with heatwaves made this sighting physically painful. |
|
Optical
equipment: |
Primarily Nikon Fieldscope with 20-60 zoom. Also Zeiss 10s when
bird was in flight. |
|
Distance
to bird(s): |
From as far as perhaps a half-mile to a few hundred yards on a
flyover. |
|
Duration
of observation: |
Perhaps 1.5 hours |
|
Habitat:
|
Shallow flooded field in the middle of large agricultural area.
Most of the surrounding fields were plowed and muddy. There were a few brushy
levees nearby. The roads in this area often run on 1 mile grids, but I
believe this was in a 1 mile X 2 mile section of farmland. As such, the area
where the bird was found was in about the middle. |
|
Behavior
of bird: |
This bird was in the company of many thousands of geese and a
few hundred ducks. It remained on the water preening, feeding, and swimming
until it flushed. The photos are representative of its posture during the
time I watched it. |
|
Description: |
Huge bird, overall white with slight grayish cast to body and
strongly grayish cast to neck. Neck long, extended straight up, often with a
kink rested on back. Bill large and generally dark, but on closer view with
pinkish cast to maxilla. Legs black/blackish. In flight, a gray band on wings that seems to correspond with
median coverts. Otherwise largely white-bodied. Neck extended straight ahead
in flight. Finer points of head shape, facial skin not visible given the
distance + conditions. |
|
Voice: |
Not heard. |
|
Similar species: |
Mute, Tundra, and Trumpeter all in play. At the time, I thought Mute was a non-issue, but I can’t rule it
out at this point. See especially: http://www.pbase.com/linthicum/image/89809134 Tundra and Trumpeter not easily separable, although many of the experienced swan observers I contacted informed me that Trumpeters retain gray body plumage throughout spring. However, some eastern observers, where Trumpeter has been reintroduced, reported that Trumpeters can be all white by February. Perhaps this reflects a different breeding schedule of eastern birds? |
|
Photographs or tape
recordings obtained? |
yes, photos by Dave Patton and me. |
|
Previous experience with
this species: |
Zero with native species. Moderate with Mute. |
|
Identification
aids: |
Everything available in all media, plus personal correspondence
with swan experts. |
|
This
description is written from: |
Notes made at time of observation, use of photos, and memory. |
|
Are you positive of your
identification? If not, explain: |
Positive that it was a swan… |
|
Reporter:
|
Paul
Conover
|
|
Date
and time: |
June 16, 2009 @ 11:30 AM |