Tweeters,

The long-lost WHOOPER SWAN has been relocated. It has apparently
been seen repeatedly since February 18 along and near Ulrick Road
just south of Ferndale in Whatcom County. Unfortunately, nothing was
posted about these sightings until yesterday, March 1.

This morning from about 11 AM to noon, I had excellent, fairly
close-range views of the Whooper (no more than 100 meters away)
along the north side of Ulrick Road. It was with about 230 TRUMPETER
SWANS, 10 TUNDRA SWANS, a MUTE SWAN, many CANADA
GEESE, and one immature SNOW GOOSE, all of which were
feeding on grass in a pasture. The MUTE SWAN, in my opinion, is almost
certainly a wild bird, likely a straggler from the well-established
population near Vancouver, BC.

Directions are as follows:

>From Interstate 5, either northbound or southbound, take Exit 260,
just south of Ferndale, and proceed west on Slater Road. At 2.2 miles
west of I-5 (beyond the Nooksack River bridge), turn north onto
Ferndale Road. Proceed north on Ferndale Road for 1.1 miles to
its junction with Ulrick Road, and then turn west onto Ulrick (a very
sharp left turn). The swans have been seen both north and south of
Ulrick Road, within 0.5 miles of Ferndale Road, but today they were
almost all north of Ulrick.

Parking:

Ulrick Road carries rather little traffic, whereas Ferndale and Imhof
Roads, the north-south roads on either side of the swan field, have
a lot of traffic. It is not possible to pull completely off Ulrick Road,
but if you are going to watch the swans from there, please pull
as far off the pavement as you can onto the grassy shoulder.

A better place from which to view the swans may be along Ferndale
Road, just north of Ulrick. There is a broad gravel shoulder on the east
side of Ferndale Road (actually on the edge of the Nooksack River
levee), with room for 3-4 cars to park comfortably. This gives an elevated
view out over the swan field, although probably farther away than
from Ulrick Road, but if the Whooper is there, it should be easy enough
to spot it with a good scope.

The Whooper was reported in this area at least on February 18, 27, 28,
and today (March 2). This would explain why it hasn't been seen around
Conway since February 17.

Good luck to anyone looking for the Whooper!


Wayne C. Weber
Delta, BC
contopus at telus.net