Hi all, I was hoping that those with knowledge could please regale me with all the "records" of "valid" Mute Swans which have occurred in Washington State. I assume that these "valid" records would all be from the British Columbia "forever established" population. I have seen at least 14 Mute Swans in Washington State, both east and west of the cascades, none of which I would ever feel good about counting as anything, let alone a state bird. Why would a Mute Swan seen in a county close to British Columbia be any more "valid" than the dozens and dozens seen further afield? When close to BC, how do you decide which is from the "forever countable" BC population and which is just like all the other uncountables in the rest of Washington State. You can't, period. I hate when I enter Mute Swan on e-Bird "just for the record" and I get credit for a state bird. I might as well mention now, that all the places I have seen "countable" Bobwhites in Washington State, I've also seen hunters actually hand releasing live Bobwhites to train their dogs. Yes, some of you have counted a state bird, perhaps a lifebird, that was not much more than a recent release; perhaps as little as a day in the wild in its entire life. Even in the more "remote" places that Bobwhites "self-sustain" in our state, just how many are actually self-sustaining and not being propped up by yearly releases and their offspring infiltrating from every side?
Keith Brady
Olympia, WA