When I was at Bear River MBR two days ago I was excited to be able to take a nice series of Trumpeter Swan photos on the west side of the auto tour loop.
Adult Trumpeter Swan in the marsh at Bear River MBR – Nikon D500, f8, 1/2500, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light
This Trumpeter Swan was associating with a couple of Tundra Swans. Because I know that Trumpeter Swans are larger than Tundra Swans my eyes were drawn to the largest swan immediately.
Trumpeter Swan adult back view – Nikon D500, f8, 1/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light
Trumpeter Swans are not as common at Bear River MBR as Tundra Swans are so I kept this swan in my viewfinder most of the time.
Tundra Swan adult standing tall on ice – Nikon D500, f8, 1/2500, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light
This photo shows one of the Tundra Swans that the Trumpeter Swan that I photographed was hanging out with.
The last time I saw Trumpeter Swans at the refuge was just nine days prior to when I photographed these swans. I couldn’t get photos of the two Trumpeter Swans I found that day because I had a thick curtain of marsh vegetation between me and those birds. These Trumpeter Swan photos more than made up for that.
The last time I actually photographed a Trumpeter Swan at the refuge was when I found an injured Trumpeter Swan that I wasn’t able to rescue in November of 2019. I still think about that bird and and feel a keen sense of sadness that I was unable to rescue the swan.
Calling Trumpeter Swan getting ready to lift off – Nikon D500, f8, 1/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light
When all four of the swans began to act as if they were going to take off and leave the area I kept my eye on the larger Trumpeter. The Trumpeter Swan called along with the Tundra Swans as they all started running to lift off.
Adult Trumpeter Swan lifting off from the marsh at Bear River MBR – Nikon D500, f8, 1/2000, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light
I had removed my 1.4x teleconverter before I started photographing the swans but I will still concerned about not being able to get photos of the larger Trumpeter Swan without clipping the wings or feet of the swan. I did clip a few wing tips when the Trumpeter Swan lifted off but I was able to take some frame filling images of it where I didn’t. That made me very happy.
Life is good. Paying attention and knowing birds can make it even better.
Mia
Even though it is still dark outside my living room window I can see that there is a dusting of snow on the ground today. It isn’t going to amount to much but we need all the moisture we can get right now and through spring.
Click here to see more of my Trumpeter Swan photos plus facts and information about this species. Click here to see more of my Tundra Swan photos plus facts and information about this species.
What a gorgeous bird.
Wonderful series of pics. Thanks Mia.
Just gorgeous! I can imagine your delight at spending time with these graceful creatures. ❤️
Education and a reward: outstanding photographs!
That take-off shot is special.
Beautiful!
Thanks for sharing views of both Trumpeter and Tundra Swans! It can be difficult identifying which species we are seeing, but today’s post reinforced the information.
Great photos of a beautiful bird.