Greetings All

Bewick's Swan sightings SEEM to be increasing in general.

Ever since I landed in the fair state of WA in 1992, I've sorted through the Skagit (and Snoho and Whatcom) swan flocks looking for Bewick's. It wasn't until 2 years ago that I found one (actually, Cameron Cox and I yelled out Bewick's Swan simultaneously as I recall). The next year there appeared to be two, both with rather limited yellow (as is typical of birds wintering in Japan), but clearly within range of Bewick's and outside that of Whistling. Both showed a rather short thick neck compared with neighboring Whistlings, a mark that seems fairly good. Of the two birds during year two, one seemed to be the bird from year one (had two small yellow spots on top of bill).

This year I found (well, Dennis Duffy did, but I was standing next to him!) a bird with about maximum yellow for a Bewick's -- approaching the amount of yellow Whooper's show -- with an imm Bewick's. Later, I found a bird near Bow that looked much like the bird near Bow the previous year.

So, in the last three years I've seen at least 4 Bewick's Swans in Skagit with no increase in effort. Interesting.

Jessie and Cameron's bird may be a "new" bird or may be the bird seen a month earlier near Bow.

Also note that the Klamath bird has been there all winter, so is not a new arrival.

Cheers
Steven Mlodinow