Lyn,
The Mute Swan at the Steigerwald NWR was first found by Ken Knittle and I believe Patrick Sullivan on Feb. 26, 2006 and has been at the refuge for most of the time since then. There have been a couple of times when he disappeared from the refuge for up to three weeks at a time. We refer to him as Lonesome George and believe he came in with some Tundra Swans that showed up at the same time. He is very wary and stays away from people except in early spring when he becomes aggressive and will come within a couple of hundred yards while displaying. As for countability that is up to you as no one knows this birds origin as they are illegal to own in Washington State.


Wilson Cady
Washougal, WA


---------- Original Message ----------
From: Lyn Topinka <pointers at pacifier.com>
To: tweeters at u.washington.edu
Subject: [Tweeters] Mute Swan at Steigerwald ...
Date: Sun, 02 Aug 2009 18:01:24 -0700


hi group ... Gene and I braved the heat and went to check out
Steigerwald NWR this afternoon ... and to our surprise there was a
Mute Swan on Steigerwald Lake !!! ... check out

http://columbiariverimages.com/Birds/Images09Aug/steigerwald_NWR_mute_swan_08-02-09.jpg

now, I've never seen a Mute Swan before but the bill, head markings,
and tail set sure match the books ... I'm open to correction or other
opinions ... and if it is a Mute, is it a legitimate wild one ??? ...
does anyone know of a place nearby who might have had an domestic
swan escapee ???

our impression of the Refuge ... it's going to be FUN !!!!!!!! ...
even with the heat (mid-90s) it was quite birdy ... and just about
the time we were melting in the heat we hit trees !!! ...

I'm not a good birder and I dont keep notes, but here's the ones I
can remember ...
american goldfinches (LOTS)
american robin
bald eagle
black-capped chickadees
flycatcher of some sort, perhaps wood pewee, haven't quite figured it out yet
great blue herons
mallards
northern harrier (male and female)
pied-billed grebe
purple finch (female)
song sparrow
white-breasted nuthatch

and there was one gorgeously singing bird, hanging out in the area of
the goldfinchs, which I'd never heard before ... have no idea what it
was ... we could never spot it, just heard it ...

and flying east to west on the Columbia River was approximately 20
big white birds, fairly low, and in a tight flying formation ... I
would assume White Pelicans (???) ... we could just see them from the
dike between the trees ...

later,
Lyn









Lyn Topinka
http://EnglishRiverWebsite.com
http://ColumbiaRiverImages.com
http://RidgefieldBirds.com

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