ML513227081

Age and sex

Adult, Unknown sex - 1

Behaviors

Flying

Media notes

One of two adult Tundra (Whistling) Swans that were found earlier in the day by Bill Deppe and Robert Fowlie here photographed in flight by Curtis A. Marantz on 14 December 2022 near Mojave Narrows Regional Park, San Bernardino County, California.

Observation details

We located the continuinng swans as soon as we approached the pond, where they remained for 10-15 minutes before flying off together toward the main lake. While under observation, the swans were foraging at the surface with the head and neck submerged most of the time, but before flying off the swans stood up, walked around a bit, and presented. We also heard the swans given a few soft honks and grunts, but I doubt either were definitive for identification.action. Both birds were large waterfowl thar were considerably larger than nearby Mallards, but not as much so as I would have expected had they been Trumpeter Swans. Both birds were structurally typical of swans, with wedge-shaped bills, rounded crowns on small heads, long necks, plump bodies, short tails, medium-length wings, short legs, and webbed feet. On both birds, the wedge-shaped bill tapered from a deep base to a blunt tip along a culmen that appeared to be relatively straight. I further thought the demarcation between the feathered forehead and the unfeathered facial-skin extended from the base of the upper mandible straight back to the upper, front corner of the eye, but I was unsure if the feathering on the forehead tapered to a point or was instead rounded. The demarcaction below the eye curved forward and then downward more sharply without having an obvious angle, but the angle where the loral skin met the front part of the eye was a bit broader than I usually associate with Tundra Swans. The bill did not seem quite as deep at the base as I would expect on a Trumpeter Swan, which resulted in the forehead having a steeper angle than the culmen, and a generally more rounded crown. I therefore did not get the impression that the culmen merged with a forehead having the same line as one would expect on a Trumpeter Swan, but did estimate that the bill was every bit as long as the head was wide. The neck was long, slim, and extending vertically from the body to the head. The body of both birds was conspicuously plump, it sat high on the water, and I noted a somewhat hunch-backed appearance. I failed altogether to note in the field the structure of the closed wings, but when seen in flight, the spread wings were of medium length and tapering from relatively broad bases to broadly pointed tips. The tail was short, seemingly only a third the length of the body without the head and neck, and cocked upward slightly, but I was unsure about its precise shape. The legs were short and relatively stout, but seemingly not as much so as I would have expected had these been Trumpeter Swans. I also noted that the feet were extensively webbed, and again, seemingly not as large as I may have expected had these been Trumpeter Swans. The plumage of both birds was essentially white throughout, though I did see some dusky stsininng about the head and upper neck if one, if not both birds. I also noted when one of these birds stood up that it was soiled on the breast, but the dark coloration also seemed to wash off. Even the fully spread wings and what I could see of the tasil appeared to be entirely white, as did what I could see of the closed wings. The bills of both birds were primarily black, but close examination further revealed both birds to have a small, yellow teardrop in the loral region just before and below the eye. I further noted pink "lips" on at least one of these birds, which seemed a bit odd for this species. The eyes were dark, but I was unable to determine their precise color. The legs and webbed feet appeared to be entirely black.

Technical information

Model

Canon EOS 7D Mark II

Lens

EF100-400mm f/4.5-5.6L IS II USM

ISO

320

Focal length

400 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/6.3

Shutter speed

1/6400 sec

Dimensions

2572 pixels x 1504 pixels

Original file size

5.25 MB