Swans on Ice

Posted on by Fred D

What a difference a day makes!  . . . freeze-up happened sooner than expected for our local Trumpeter Swan family. The few remaining open patches of water these big birds require for their running take-off is quickly becoming solid-state, and Mom is ‘honking-out’ Dad for not booking an earlier flight south for their cygnets and them 😊


Not to worry. I spoke with a neighbor today who is an avian expert and shares my concern for our Trumpeters’ plight. He is in contact with Bird Rescue authorities who will be able to institute SAD (Swan Assisted Departure) if necessary . . . stay tuned 😊

Where’s the ice skates?

“Love to Live, Live to Love” – Amy Carmichael    
                                                                 
Keep Looking Up . . . His best is yet to come!

Trumpeter Swan Update

Posted on by Fred D

Little orphan cygnet Bigfoot evidently is a prodigy who earned their solo flight certification early. He/she took off alone for points south yesterday . . . Hooray!


Mother Nature has granted our Trumpeter family a Flight School extension. The temps have warmed into the 40s and melted much of the ice that had began to form on the lake. The larger of our two local cygnets was able to get airborne for a short distance with their parents yesterday before splashing back down in somewhat less than graceful fashion. The smaller cygnet was unable to achieve lift-off and  paddled madly behind across the lake squawking “Wait Up! Wait Up!” 😊. Here’s a few pics of our ‘Trumps’.

I M Blessed . . . May U B 2

Trumpeter Swan Family
Cruising Fish Lake
Mom and Cygnets
Mom Dropped Something
All Grown Up
Dad Snoozing
Regal Beauty

Swans and Orphans

Posted on by Fred D

Trumpeter Swan Flight School finally commenced on Fish Lake today with the cygnets observing their parents demonstrate Avionics 101.

A lone Trumpeter Swan cygnet, slightly larger than our two resident cygnets, mysteriously appeared on the lake. I can only surmise this little orphan was somehow left behind by its parents I never saw. The little dude/dudette ??? attempted to join our two local cygnets but was fiercely honked away by their territorial Trumpeter parents.

In past years small flocks of swans have landed on the lake for a short layover before resuming their flight south. Hopefully this little Trumpeter I’ve affectionately nicknamed Bigfoot will  be able to resume its journey south before freeze-up.
         
Keep Looking Up . . . His best is yet to come!

Pre-flight Warmup
Airborne
Landing
Talking with Mom
Papa ‘Trump’
Trumpeter Swan Cygnets
Cygnet on Ice
Icy Waters
Orphaned ‘Bigfoot’

Flight School

Posted on by Fred D

Flight School needs to start soon if these cygnets are going to accompany their parents south before freeze-up. This young Trumpeter swan pair hatched their cygnets the end of June , much later than previous Trumpeter parents . . . Frosty Eagle’s watching.

“Love to Live, Live to Love” – Amy Carmichael    
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Keep Looking Up . . . His best is yet to come!

Survival of the Fittest

Posted on by Fred D

On Fish Lake, in the shadow of Castle Mountain, last June a Trumpeter Swan pair hatched three downy white signets. They’ve since grown into feathered gray versions, a third the size of their large, stately parents . . . the serene beauty of Nature.

Sadly, one of the signets has now gone missing. At 4 AM the other morning a neighbor heard the Trumpeters making a ruckus. The suspected assassin is another one of Mother Nature’s local feral menagerie, a great horned owl . . . the cruel barbarity of Nature.

Of the remaining two signets, one appears slightly larger. Hopefully both will survive for the flight south with their parents before freeze-up.

Trumpeter Swans and Signets
Trumpeter Swans – Fish Lake – Castle Mountain


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Keep Looking Up . . . His best is yet to come!

Trumpeter Swans

Posted on by Fred D

Homo sapiens or Cygnus buccinator, no matter the species newborns are universally considered cute and adorable . . . even I was cute once back when dinosaurs roamed the earth 😊.

This afternoon I was blessed paddling my canoe around Fish Lake photographing Mr. & Mrs. Trumpeter and their three new signets.

Keep Looking Up . . . His best is yet to come

Trumpeter Swan Family Swim
Proud Parents
Day-old Signet
Mom and Triplets
Following Dad
Snuggling with Mom
Trumpeter Swans on Fish Lake

Seasons Exchange

Posted on by Fred D

Snows receding from the mountains . . .

Trumpeter swans nesting on the lake . . .

Spring relinquishing to Summer . . .

Seasons exchange in the Land of the Midnight Sun

 “To everything there is a season, a time for every purpose under heaven” – Ecclesiastes 3:1

                                           
Keep Looking Up . . . His best is yet to come!

Giants in the Clouds
Trumpeter Swans