ML296678181
Contributor
Date
Location
- Age
- Not specified
- Sex
- Not specified
- Playback
- Not specified
Observation details
I tried my best to get an exact count. The 413 swans were mostly Trumpeters. Trumpeters were frequently calling while I only heard a few Tundras over the course of our visit. Fortunately the swans were mostly together out on the lakes, so the size difference was obvious, with the majority of the swans being larger, longer-necked Trumpeters compared to the smaller more compact/goose-shaped Tundras. Along the loop we counted 37 Trumpeters fly in versus just 4 Tundras. I was surprised by this high count and especially surprised by the high ratio of Trumpeters to Tundras, so I did my best to make as careful a count as possible. I'm used to seeing hundreds of Tundras and maybe a few groups of Trumpeters mixed in, so I would probably raise an eyebrow if I were the reviewer, but given my careful counts I can't really justify putting a lower number without blatantly ignoring what I saw and heard. I checked the flocks many times and always came up with mostly Trumpeter with only a few Tundras mixed in, plus the calls were almost all Trumpeters. It is possible that there were additional Tundras hidden away at the edges of the lakes, but any hidden swans obviously weren't included in this tally; access makes it hard to get a clear look at all of the bodies of water, so I mostly saw swans out in the middle of the lakes. Someone with better access might be able to get a better handle on estimates, but try as I might I wasn't able to come up with a lower/more conservative number than the one I put.
Technical information
- Recorder
- Microphone
- Accessories
- Original file size
- 1018.23 KB