A Wh operS, v ( y ,scy, ,is) ,t Yellowstole N tiontl P ,r ,, W omin, with comments NorthAmeric, m r ports th sp o s
Abstract conducted in Yellowstone National Park, TerryMcEneaney This article treats the occurrence of Wyomingsince 1986. On 26 November Wyoming'sfirst WhooperSwan (Cygnus 2003,a daywith sunnyskies and tempera- P.O. Box546 cygnus),provides an overview of thespecies' tures In the twentiesFahrenheit, I was con- distribution in North America, and consid- ductingone of thesesurveys in "the Nar- YellowstoneNational Park, Wyoming 82190 ersthe problemsposed for the ornithologi- rows"area of HaydenValley and locateda (eraall:[email protected]) cal recordby waterfuwlthat haveescaped swan(Figures 1-4) withthe following char- from collections,specifically Whooper acteristics,observed at 1100 MST with an Swans. 8 x 42 binocular at a distance of 70 m: A largeswan, the size of a Trumpeter bird occasionallydelivered a whoo-oup Introduction Swan[of which503 werepresent]; all call, in contrastto the familiar ko-hoh Waterfuwl(order Anserifurmes)are someof white in plumagebut with faint gray buglingof the TrumpeterSwans. Both the moststudied and observedgroups of tingeson theneck; black legs and feet; legswere seen dearly when the bird birdsin NorthAmerica, with counfiesspub- a blackbill with a brightlemon-yellow walked onto the ice, and both were licationsavailable on the subjectsof water- rhamphothecalmaterial extending seento be without band;the halux was fowl identificationand ecology Although fromthe eye and the basal portions of presenton bothlegs. Tipsof retrices likely of SouthernHemisphere origin theupper mandible to thenares, form- andremiges were unworn, and the bird (Livezey1996), waterfuwlare now most inga lemon-yellowtriangular patch on wasunpinioned. Behavior as wary as diverseand especiallyabundant in the the bill. At the interface of the bill and accompanyingTrumpeter Swans. NorthernHemisphere, where many species the forehead was a thin black border. Havinglogged more than 200,000Trum- are highlymigratory. Aviculturalists and/or The lowermandible appeared black at peterSwan sightings in 20 yearswith Yel- privatepropagators, zoological parks, and a distance but on closer examination lowstone National Park and at Red Rock othervenues with collections of regionaland showed a triangular lemon-yellow LakesNational Wildlife Refuge in Montana, exoticwaterfowl are widespreadin these patch,largest at thebase of thebill and I wasquickly able to rule out an aberrant samezoogeographic regions. Escapees and taperingoff to a point approximately TrumpeterSwan and to rule in Whooper presumedescapees from suchcollections one-third down the length of the Swan,a speciesfamiliar from an Alaskan trip poseregular difficulties for bird records com- underside of the lower mandible. The in 2000 (McEneaney2004, in press). 1 mittees around the world, which alertedlocal and regional birders, often cannotdetermine the prove- and over the courseof the winter, nance of individual birds with cer- some 700 observers were able to tainty and thus have sometimes seethis individual,which traveled taken to tabling, discarding,or over the course of the season from rejectingoutright most or allrecords the YellowstoneRiver in Hayden of potentiallyvagrant waterfowl Valleyto the FireholeRiver near species.The treatmentof Whooper BiscuitBasin, evetonally return- Swan (Cygnuscygnus) in North ing to HaydenValley befure it Americaby avianrecords commit- departedsome time after 1 March tees has been uneven, with western 2004, when lastobserved. authorities recently including reportedbirds on officialavifaunal Distributionin Eurasia lists but most central and eastern and North America North American committees not The current nesting range of includingor, most often, not review- WhooperSwan stretches from the ingsuch reports. The recent record tundra-like habitat of Iceland, to of a WhooperSwan at Yellowstone northernmostScotland, through in Wyoming, in mid-continent, the boreal forest/taigazone of promptedsynoptic consideration of Scandinavia,and acrossnorthern pastreports of thisspecies on a con- Russia through northeastern tinental scale and an evaluation of its Siberia,induding the Kamchatka status in North America. Peninsulaand the Gulf of Anadyr. The southernmost limits of the The Yellowstone nestingrange extend to Mongolia WhooperSwan, 2003-2004 and Kazakhstan. Wintering Weeklywinter surveys of Trumpeter Figure1. WhooperSwan at Yellowstone National PaYk, along the Yellowstone River groundslie in Iceland and in Swans (C. buccinator) have been inHayden Valley, 19 December 2003. Photograph byTerryAfcEneaney. westernand central Europe south
VOLUME 58 (2004) NUMRER 2 301 asfar as the Baltic Sea and eastward through pursuedand killed youngbirds and the collections. Most of the northeastern Cana- the Black,Caspian. and Aml Seasto coastal adults,when molting and unable to fly"and dian and U.S. records after 1992 have been Chinaand Japan (Brazil 2003). citesHagerup (1891, The Birds of Greenland) assumed to be connected with the intro- Althoughthe WhooperSwan has been that the speciesfformerly nested in South ducedbreeding population of Whooper characterizedas an ecologicalcounterpart or Greenland,but is now only a rare visitor," Swans•n Massachusetts,present 1993- "replacement"of the TrumpeterSwan and alsonoted by Salomonsen(1950). At pres- 2002, or with severalindividual Whoopers the two specieshave at timesbeen consid- ent, the speciesis onlya vagrantto Green- known to have been released or to have eredconspecific or to forma superspecies, land accordingto Boertmann(1994), who escaped (see section on feral breeders evidencesuggests that the Whooper Swan is lists10 records (all Maythrough September) below). a largerderivitive of thesame stock that gave from Southeast Greenland. nine records In Alaska,Whooper Swan has been doc- rise to the Iundra Swan (C. columbianus), (Junethrough September) from Northeast umentedboth photographically and by spec- including the Eurasian form known as Greenland,and lists the species as occurring imen, of which thereare at leastseven (Gib- Bewick'sSwan (C. c. be•vickii),which also "probablyannually" between February and sonand Kessel 1997). Thefirst Whooper in showsa largearea of yellowat thebase of the October in West Greenland, where it is seen Alaskawas reported in the PribilofIslands at bill (Parkes1958, kivezey 1996). Whooper mostoften between Qaqortoq and Sisimiut. St. Paul,up to threebirds in Novemberand Swansdiffer from their similarlyshaped In mainland eastern North America, December1941 (Wilke 1944), and subse- counterpartin lackingan enlarged bony case recordsof WhooperSwan accrue chiefly quentearly records come from the western on the sternum and are somewhat intermedi- fromthe northeastern quadrant of theconti- and central Aleutian Islands on Atka atetowards Iundra Swan in thisregard. Also, nent, as is almostinvariably the casewith (Kenyon 1963) and Amchitka (Kenyon thebreeding range of Whooper Swan is more otherlarge Palearctic waterfowl that breed 1961, 1963; Williamson et al. 1971). northerlythan Irumpeter,and Whooper westwardto Greenlandand/or Iceland,such Thoughprobably found wintering there one Swansundertake long-distance migrations as Pink-looted Goose (Anser brachy- hundredyears earlier (Turner 1885), it was thatdiffer markedly from the restrtcted range rhynchus),Greenland Greater White-fronted first confirmed on Attu Island in the far of TrumpeterSwan, at leastin moderntimes, GooseCA. albiJronsfiavirostris), andBarnacle westernAleutians m 1981,where it hasalso andfrom the sedentary nature (in somecon- Goose(Branta leucopsis)(A.O.U. 1998). nestedsuccessfully in 1996 and 1997(Sykes texts, as at Yellowstone)of Irumpeters Nevertheless, because aviculturalists and andSonneborn 1998), the only North Amer- (Brazil2003). Although easily recognizable othershold WhooperSwans in collections, icanbreeding of wild birdsrecorded away in the fieldas adults or subadults,Whooper mostrecords of thespecies have been treated from Greenland. Byrd et al. (1974) and TrumpeterSwans are moredifficult to asprobable or possibleescapees and do not describedWhooper Swans as arrivingin distinguishas cygnets. appearon stateor provincialavifaunal lists small flocks of five to fifteen to winter at WhooperSwan formerly bred in eastern- (Iable 1). A recordof a WhooperSwan at Adak, arrivingas early as 9 November most North America in Greenland, where Mud Lake,Alexander, Washington County, (1970) and departingas late as 9 April Bent (1962) notes that it '•is said to have Maineon 10 September1903 (Palmer1949; (1970). Kesseland Gibson(1978) term the beenexterminated [...1 by thenatives, who photographin Knight1908, but dataincor- speciesan "uncommonlocal winter visitant rect there) has sometimes in the western and central Aleutian Islands been cited as referringto a from earlyNovember through mid-April • bird of wild provenance,but (earliest:26 October1957; latest 20 April waterfowl collections were 1975and 8 May 1976)and a "veryrare visi- alreadya partof Americanlife tant at any season"in the Pribilofs,with in the earlytwentieth century. recordsof single birds there between Nevertheless, there were no Novemberand July in 1949, 1970, 1976, outwardindications of captiv- and 1977, in addition to the record of three ity on the specimen(Palmer in 1941. Ihere are far fewerreports of the 1949). Ihe relatively small speciesfor the mainland. Johnsonand wingmeasurements suggested Sladen(1983) reportedtwo nearKotzebue to Palmer(1949) that it might in 1971. Kesseland Gibson (1978) note a have come from the Icelandic western roamland Alaska record of two at population,which although theNoatak River Delta on 19June1967, two reportedly small birds are at Wales ll June 1975, three on St. apparentlyno more so than LawrenceIsland on 12 June 1976, one on individualselsewhere (Palmer the mainlandat Selawikin June 1965, and 1976). A search of the litera- two on the south-central mainland at Cor- tureand correspondence with dovaon 23 October1977. Ihe highestcount state and provincial bird of thespecies in NorthAmerica is apparently recordscommittees has pro- of 31 atAmchitka 10 April 1970(Kessel and duced no eastern North Amer- Gibson 1978). icanrecords accepted by such A searchof post-1978literature indicates committees. Nonetheless, that mostAlaska records involve singles or dozens of Whooper Swans smallgroups (fewer than 10 birds)seen in have been detected in the Easl the outer Aleutians(e.g., Shemya,Attu, and Midwest, and some of Adak, Amchitka, Little Kiska, Buldir) and these bxrds have been of unde- Figure2. WhooperSwan at Yellowstone National Park, on Firehole River north of Old are from the nonbreedingseason, fall and Faithfulgeyser, 14January :2004. The pattern/shape ofyellow on Whooper Swans' termined or indeterminate springin particular;there are a also few billsappear todiffer regionally. Study ofthe precise patterns couM yidd dues as to provenance,whereas others springrecords from St. LawrenceIsland. A theprovenance ofindividual swans (B•azi12003). Photograph hyJayLehman. have been traced to waterfowl late-springrecord from the mainlandat
•02 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS Table1.Records andreports ofWhooper Swans ineastern Idorth America exclusive ofGreenland, 1903-2004,arranged chronologically. 17/01/1999 Eastham,MA 1 Hunt1999 02/05/199• Saint-Barthelemy,PQ 1 BannonandDave 199• DATE(DAY/M/Y) LOCATIOId IdUMBERSOURCE/NOTES 14/05/1999 Cowansville,PQ 1 Bannonand David 1999 10/09/1903õ MudL, Alexander, ME 1 Palmer1949 07/05/1999(text) GreatBay, NH 6y. õdeS.Mh•ck 07/1973 nearDavidsonville, MD 2* JohnsonandSinden 1983 08/06-27/07/1999 Trois-Pistnies,PQ 5 Davidet al. 1999 winter1978-1979 Hamilton/Dakville,ON 3y. James1991 08/1999 CobbosseeconteeL.,ME 1 Ellisonand Martin 2000 03/02/1980 Bronte,oN 1 Godfrey1986 07/01/-05/04/2000 Miss.River, Lee County, IA 1 Brock2000 winter1981-1982 nearHamilton, ON 1 James1991 08-30/03/2000 Mason,near Cincinnati, OH 1 Brock2000; fide J. Lehman 11/12/1983 Greensboro,Caroline Co.,UD 1 PeterjehnandOavis 1996 22/01-14/02/2000 CampDennison 1 Brock2000; fide J. Lehman 11/03/1993+ aroundRobert Moses S.P., NY 3 Schiffand Wollin 1993, 27/01/2000 Foster,IdD 1d Martin2000 Perkins1995 t 25-26/02/2000 MillerRoach, lid Brock2000 05/1993-19/10/2002Essex Co, MA 3-12' Ber•1997;õdeJ.Berryt 14/05/2000 BucksCo., PA unconfirmed;Intemet 20/01/19920 Clermont,LakeCo., FL 2 fideB. Pranty 27/08/2000 YamaskaPackand Granby, PQ Bannonetal. 2001 25-27/08/1992 SargentCo.,IdD 1 BergmanandHuman 1995 30/12/2001 St.Albans, VT Hunt2002 02/1993 BlackDog L., Dakota Co,MN 1 fideP. 5vingen 02/02/2002 Fenisburgh,VT Hunt2002 21/07-11/08/1994 Penouille,Gasp&, PQ 3 Aubryand Bannon 1995a 21104-30/06/2002 GaletonL.,P•er CO.,PA 1 PeensylvoniaBirds16:123 18-20/08/1994 CapeIdorth, Labrador, IlL 3 Mactavish1995 31/07/2002 Port5tanlay, ON unconfirmed;atS.T.P. 23/10/1994 HennepinCo.,Mid 1 fideP. Svingen 11/11/2003& L Susquehanna,NJ fideJ. Burgini, unbanded 20/01-14/02/1994 L Mattamuskeet,IJC 1 Oavis1995, fide R. Oavis 21/03/2004 0111995 Martha'sVineyard, MA 3 Elmla1995 24/03/2003 KittatinnyValley 5•., NJ 1 fideJ.Burgiel •02/20-25/04/1995 Oc•oraraL.,Lancaster Co.,PA PennsykaniaBirds9:33,9116/04/2003 LickingCO.,OH 1 õdeJ.McCormac 03/1995 locationunknown, MO 1 Brock2000 25/10-01/11/2003 CampbellL.,McLeod Co.,Mid 1 fideP. 5vingen ~15-30/05/1995 severallocations, IdB 1 Maybank1995 01/01/2004 ScottCo., MN 1 fideP. 5vingen 11-16/06/1995 AnticostiI.,PQ 2 Aubreyand Bannon 1995b 05-08/02/2004 ManhallCo., IA 1 fideJ. Dinsmore 10/1995 Jordan,Scott Co., Mid 1 fideP. Svingen ~1996 Plymouth,MA 1 õdeT.French Althoughmany ofthe above reports cannot belinked conclusively toreleased orescaped birds, none has been accepted bya state records committee asrepresenting arecord ofa wddWhooper Swan (very few reports have been reviewed). 02/1996 BlackDog L., Dakota Co., MN 1 fideP. Svingen Manynortheastern U.S.and Canadian reports ofWhooper Swans have been assumed (inpublished sources) tobe con- 04/1997 CadosAvery W.M.A., Mid 1 fideP. Svingen nectedw•th the Whooper Swans that established themselves innortheastern Massachuse• 1993through 2002 (see text). 16/04/1996 Idashua,IdH 1a fideT. French Manyofthe other reports, bothin the East and the Midwest, dearly represent multiple sightings ofthe same individuals, whatevertheir provenante. Inaddition Iothe reports above, there w•re several reports ofWhooper Swan inMinnesota 25/05/1997- GrandManan archipelago, IdB 1 McLaren1998 duringthe 1980s, but I havebeen unable toascertain theirdates/localaons. 10/01/1998 aThis adult apl•ared ata small office park pond; itsaggressive behavior ledto its betrig captu redby staff atthe office park, 05/04/1907 Hampton,IdH 1 Perkins1997 whoreleased itat Kittery, MEon 30 April 1996. 06-12/1997 GreatBay, IdH 4 Ber•1997; fide S. Mirick bBelieved bymost observers tobe the same indivkhal asseen at nea[by Grand Manan, NBseveral months earlier. 02/02/1998+ GreatBay, idH lm. Berry1997; õde S. Mirick CThisbird was captured thenext day by wildlife officials andput in a captive fatilia. 13/06-04/07/1998 WashingtonCo.,Mid 5• fideP. 5vingen dThts toe-dipped birdwas found nearthe Carrlngton golfcourse byArrowwood NationalWddlife Refuge employees and 05/1999 CarlosAveryW.M.A., Mid 1 õdeP.Svingen takento a localzoo. 08/1999 GreatBay, IdH 1f. fideS. Mirick •-Brazil (2003) incorrectly givesthe year of the escaped LongIsland birds as1991 and the year of the first report ofthree WhoopersinEssex Count•/, MAas 1992. 12/10/1998-03/1999Lubec, ME 1b EllisonandMartin 1999, Hunt1999 õThe date and location forthis specimen (photograph inKnight 1908) are incorrectly given inmany sources. winter1998-1999 ConnetquotS.P.,NY 7 Schiffand Wollin 1993 0 Theyear of this report isincorrectly published inmost sources as1991; these birds were known tobe escapees 14/03/1999 HagarPond, Marlborough, MA 1c fideT.French • = Breedingrecords offetal bkds; see main text. m. = male,f.= female,y.= yearling
SafetySound, Nome from May through24 notes,Table 2). Observationsof juvenile ing groundsat Nahanni National Park, June 1994 (Tobishand Isleib 1992) was birds that associate with adult Tundra Swan Yukon Territories, and Grand Prairie, unusual for the location. as well as WhooperSwan have produced Alberta. In the pastseveral decades, data As recordsof winteringWhooper Swans speculationas to the hybridderivation of fromneck-collaring studies and population haveapparently increased in Alaska,so too thesebirds, but hybrid young have only been trendanalysis have indicated an influx of havethey increased in westernNorth Amer- reportedfrom feral nesters in Alberta(Table migrant CanadianTrumpeter Swans into ica,particularly in thewestern third of the 2). The associationof Whooperwith Tun- Yellowstonebeginning in mid-October. continent(Table 2). Nevertheless,Whooper dra Swanshas also sometimesproduced Manyof theseswans travel to Yellowstone in Swansrecorded in the contiguousUnited assumptionsof captiveprovenance in such thefall by way of theEast Front of theRock- Stateshave usually been combined under the birds, but a recordof an adult Whooper ies in Montana. As colder weather category"controversial" (A.O.U. 1998). The Swanapparently bonded with a TundraSwan approaches,Yellowstone's swan numbers increasein WhooperSwan reports along the at Golovin, Alaska 11-23 November2000 increase to several hundred individuals in WestCoast, in concertwith theproliferation and later (Tobish2001) has perhapstem- thelate autumn, certainly due to theinflu- of Alaskanrecords of thespecies, has led the peredthis assumption. enceof geothermalwaters, particularly on CaliforniaBird Records Committee to accept the area'sriver systems.Once large lakes someWhooper Swan records, as has the Ore- The YellowstoneSwan: contexts suchas Yellowstone Lake begin freezing in gonBird Records Committee (Table 2). In In weighingquestions of provenance,it is lateDecember or earlyJanuary, most Trum- some instances,Whoopers have been sometimes useful to consider the flock- petersbegin leaving the Yellowstonearea. observed in close associaEionwith Tundra mates.In recentyears, the Trumpeter Swans The few TundraSwans that appearin Yel- Swans,occasionally with juvenile birds resident in Yellowstone have numbered lowstonein the fall typicallyleave the area whoseidentities have not alwaysbeen clear, between16 and 20. The WhooperSwan, earlier,usually just after the first cold spell. andpublished sources have offered inconsis- however, accompanied503 Trumpeter For the YellowstoneWhooper Swan, it is tentaccounts of the identificationof young Swanson the first day of its observation. not difficultto constructa plausibletheory birdsseen in Oregonand alongthe Ore- Several neck-collaredTrumpeter Swans of wildprovenance. Whooper Swan popula- gon-Californiaborder in particular(see presenlthat day were birds marked on nest- tions,as documentedon theJapanese win-
VOLUME 58 (2004) NUMBER 2 303 Table2. Recordsand reports ofWhooper Swans inwestern North America exclusive ofAlaska, 1977-2003,arranged chronologically. 11/01/2001 FairmontHotSprings, BC 1 D.Ce•le, inlift. 10/03/2001 LowerKlamath N.W.R., CA If Coleand McCasbie 2004 DATE(DAY/M•Y) LOCATION NUMBER SOURCE/NOTES 5-11/03/2001 Somers,MT 1 Trochld12001 winter1978-1979 Hamilton/Oakville,ON 3y. James1991 19/12/2001 L.Almanor, Plumas Co.,CA 1 CB.R.C(inms.) 11/11/1977 nearPort Hardy, BC 1a CampbelletaL 2001 15-30/11/2003 Somers,MT 1 Trochlel12003 17-19/01/1984 nearGrimes, Colusa Co,, CA 1" Robenon1986 26/11/2003- YellowstoneN.P.,WY 1 presentpaper 20/11/1985 Pesoadorn,CA 2 unreviewed/unconfirmed 01/03/2004 16/12/1988 VeniceI., nearStockton, CA 1 Yenet aL 1989 28/0111989 MountainLake Park, CA 1 C.B.R.C.(inms.) I•cordsinboldface printhave been reviewed andaccepted asreferring tobirds ofwild provenanco bystate records committees or 24/11/1991 LowerKlamath N.W.R., CA 1b Yeeet al. 1992a, sram-levelmonographs. between theOregon andCalifornia records, thereis assumed tobe much doplicaOon ofindividuals. Thereare 18/01/1992 noreports ofthe species forSaskatchewan (contraPatten 2000, Brazil 2003). 9-10/12/1993 Richvale,CA 1* C.B.R.COnms.) aCampbell etal. (2001) note that this record wasin context ofa large trumpeter Swanfloc• and that Kessel andG•bson (1978) list2 WhooperSwans among aflock of26 Trumpeter Swans atCordova insouth-coastal Alaska23 October 1977. winter1993-1994 Olivehurst,Yuba Co., CA 1* unreviewed/unconfirmed bThis birdwas also reported onthe Oregon sideofthe refuge 07/12/1991-22/02/ID2 butwas notaccepted ashawng actually been 21/12/1993 HowardSlough W.A., CA 1* C.B.R.C(inms.) k•the state ofOregon (fideOregon BR.C ). 10-21/11/1994 SummerL.,OR 1c St.Louis 1995; Tweit and cThis birdwas inelose assodaRon withalundra Swan andthree immature birdsthat were initially puUishnd ashybrid young, butthe Gilligan1995 birdswere observed atgreat distance andassumed tobe hybrids onlybecause oftheir apparent association withthe lundra Swan. No 26-27102/1994 LowerKlamath N.W.L CA 1* C.B.R.C.(inms.) caseforhybrid de•vation wasbased ondose study ofplumage orstructure (fideH. Nehls). Most regional observers believethat the 17/014)7/02/1995 nearGrimes, Colusa Co., CA 1 Yeeet al. 1995 S•mmerL,OR birds arethe same individuals asthose documented inseveral winters atLower Klamath N.W.R., OR/CA, based ont•p- •calmovements ofswans inthe area after the •ze-up of Summer L. 03-04/01/1996 nearGrimes, Colusa Co.,CA 1 Badeyand Singer 1996 dAccording toobservers Wayne Weber and Andy Raniseth, th•sbirdwas in dose association withaTundra Swan and two immature 25-27/07/1996 SealBay, Vancouver I.,BC 1 Campbelletal. 2001 birdsthatwere alsobelieved toWhoopers, although someobservers sugge•d they young have been hybrids. Campbell etah (2001) 27/114)1/12/1997Aifiie, Polk Co., OR 1 Tweitand Gilligan 1998, indicatethepresence, however, ofone adult and one HY bird and do not indicate hybrid derivation forthe juvenile. Tweitand rice 1998 eEvaluated bythe Alberta Records Committee and"d•termined tobe an escapee fromtheIrricana ureathat mated inthe previous 24-28/01/1998 LowerKlamath N.W.R., CA/OR 1 C.B.R.C.Onms.), O.B.R.C. summerwithaferal Tundra Swan and raised twoyoung inIrricana. Thesebirds may bethe source orthofamily group reported from 5-7/11/1998 Courtenay,Vancouver I.,BC 1 Brazfi2003; D. Cecile, in nearbyinterior British Columbia infall 1•99" (fide R. Koes). 01/01/1999 SevenMile Ln., Glenn Co., CA 1 C.B.R.C.(inms.) fWhile oneadult and3juvenile WhooperSwans present at Unit 4of Lower KlamathN.W.B., CA01/01-10/03/2001 wasapproved by theCalifornia BirdRecords Commi•ee,"the HenBfication ofa smaller adultat adjacent White Lon the same refuge on10/03/2001 17-19/04/1999 IrricanaSloughs, AB i Koesand Taylor 1999 wasque•ioned andnot accepted (although endorsed bya majori•y),with atleast ore member suggesting itwas aWhooper Swanx 7-17/11/1999 MamitLake, BC 2d Campbelletal. 2001 TundraSwan hybrid from amixed pairwith three young present during thewinter of2000-2001" (Coleand McCasEe 2004). 4-11/04/2000 IrricanaSloughs, AB 1e Koesand Taylor 2000 •Nntpubiishedin•rthAmeric•nR•rdsandpredecess•rj•uma•sbecauseofmissing•rpartia•seas•na•rep•rt.C.B.R.C.= California 014)6/11/2000 SummerL., OR 4 Mlodinowand Tweit 2001a BirdRecordsCommittee; 0 B.R.C= Oregon BirdRecords Committee. 01/01-10/03/2001 LowerKlamath N.W.R., CA/OR 4 Gloveretal. 2001, Ericksonand Hamfiton 2001 Mlodinowand Tweit 2001b Mlodinowet al. 2001
teringgrounds, have increased steadily, from recentsuspected escapee seen in 2001 and publiclyon escapeesor othersubjects. Most 7500 in 1982 to 18,000 in 1990 to 32.000 in 2003 in Somers,Montana (Table 2; not the of the aviculturalistsI contacted expressed 2000(Brazil 2003). Duringthe same period, sameindividual as the Yellowstoneswan), it the opinion that far fewer waterfowlhave Alaskan records--all assumed to be of wild is not possible,strictly speaking, to rule out escapedfrom captivity in NorthAmerica in birds•have shown increases as well, captiveprovenance in any of the western recentyears than in timespast, and that althoughthe ornithologicalexploration of Lower48 records.However, there are many thosefew that do rarelystray more than the western Aleutian islands has also reasonsto weigh the condition,behavior, about 50 km from home collections. Most increasedin thepast three decades, and the and arrivaltiming of eachindividual when areunfit for long flights or copingwith pred- apparentincrease in Alaskanrecords may be evaluatingrecords. atorsand other hazards, and almost all cap- owing in part to better coverage. The tive-reared birds seem reliant on humans speciesis knownto fly at high elevations Aviculturalists'perspectives onescapees whenaway from home collections, according andto coverlarge distances in a singleflight Was the Yellowstone bird a wild swan or to mostcollectors, some of whom have relo- (Brazil 2003), and birds from easternSiberia lnorelikely an escapee? I conducted a thor- catedescapees and returnedthem to collec- thatturn up in mainlandAlaska occasionally ough reviewof WhooperSwan captivity tions. The expenseand investmentof time flockwith Tundraor TrumpeterSwans. The recordsin thearea, communicating directly that captivewaterfowl represent to these appearanceof the YellowstoneWhooper withboth avicuhuralists and wildfowl prop- ownersmean that virtuallyall of them are Swanwas preceded by a powerfullow-pres- agators.All captiveWhooper Swans around loath to lose their birds. suresystem that crossed froin Siberia 19-22 Yellowstone--in Montana. Idaho, and In the United Statesof America, recent November,which apparently also brought a Wyoming--couldbe accounted for by own- regulations appear to have reduced Siberian Accentor (Prunella montanella) to ers. Togetherwith informationon the con- markedlythe number of waterfowllost from ParadiseValley of Montana,about 50 km dition of the swan, this findingindicates collections,in the opinionof aviculturalists fromthe HaydenValley, 22 Novemberand that the provenanceof thisindividual was interviewed. Because of the threats to later. In wider context,many Siberian certainlynot a waterfowlcollection within endemicwildlife by exotic diseasesand speciesthat haveproven to be regularvisi- the region. introducedspecies, for instance,both the U. tors to Alaskaalso show pronounced pat- My interviewswith aviculturalists,includ- S. Fish and Wildlife Service and various state ternsof occurrencesouth along the Pacific ing the primarypropagator of Whooper wildlifeagencies have instituted new restric- coastand weaker but detectablepatterns in Swanin NorthAmerica, impressed me with tionson privatepropagators of waterfowl. the interior West. howknowledgeable they are--and how com- Thosepossessing Mute Swans(C. olor),for Nevertheless,given the presenceof mittedto theiravocation of breedingor rais- instance,must possessa permit and com- feral/releasedWhooper Swans in the west- ing waterfowlin captivity My impression. pletean annualreport, as this species is now ern Midwesi (the North Dakota birds could too,has been that aviculturalists are a very coveredunder the Migratory Bird Treaty Act. pertain to Minnesotareleases), as well as privateand rather dose-lmit group, with few In somestates, aviculturalists with captive breedingferal Whoopers in Albertaand a adherentsinclined to expresstheir views birds are requiredto completeannual
304 NORTH AMERICAN BIRDS reportsand pass annual inspections oftheir Arnold, Anne Arundel County,Maryland County,Massachusetts resists brief sum- birdsand their facilities and sanitation prac- purchaseda pair of WhooperSwans and mary. In thespring of 1993,three Whoop- tices. In many cases,captive birds are releasedthem on hisproperty. In May 1970, ers were observedamong the local Mute requiredto berendered permanently flight- theynested, but all fourcygnets were killed Swansin Ipswich,Massachusetts. These less,which sometimesrequires a surgical by predators.A secondbrood produced birds basedon the presenceof a bandon procedure.U.S. Fishand WildlifeService three fledglingsthat year, one of which one individual and their tame behavior-- encouragesfederal bands to be placedon pairedwith the adult female (after the death were believed at that time to have come from waterfowlin additionto privateidentifica- of the male), the othertwo pairingtogether a waterfowl collection whose location was tion bands. Escapedbirds, particularly in a nearbypond but rangingaround the unknown(Berry 1997, French 1997). It was hatch-yearbirds, are alwaysa concernfor county. In May 1973, the young pair later learned that these birds were almost state agencies,and so most aviaries are attemptedto nest but was unsuccessful, certainlyfrom a propagatorin Gloucester, requiredto have netting or evendouble-net- againowing to predators.This pair relo- Massachusetts,who had given or soldprob- tinginstalled. cated to the Patuxent River near David- ablyfour Whoopersto a propertyowner in In discussingspecifically the case of the sonville,where again unsuccessful in nest- Ipswich,Massachusetts. The farm was sold, YellowstoneWhooper Swan with avicultural- ing. Theywere banded and neck-collared 22 and the new owners were unaware of the isis, all felt that the bird could not have been July1973 and have not been seen in thearea historyof the swans,but at leasttwo were of captiveprovenance, especially given the sincethat time (Johnsonand Sladen1983). free-flyingas of at least1995 (T. French,in harshconditions of the park. Yellowstone litt.). Onebird, possibly injured, was killed National Park is one of the most hostile win- ß New York 1993 by a pair that returnedin spring,according ter environments in the Lower 48 States. In earlyMarch 1993, during a strongwinter to the new propertyowners. Temperaturesof-30 ø to -45ø F are not storm,waterfowl collectors on LongIsland The followingsummar• is taken from uncommonlyrecorded in the park (lowest and in upstateNew York apparentlylost Berry(1997) and from communication with on recordis-66 ø F), and the winter seasonof threeand twoWhooper Swans from collec- JimBerry, who kept close track of thesebirds 2003-2004was particularly harsh, with deep tions,respectively, when outdoorholding duringtheir stay in thisarea, through 2002. snowsand temperatures in the range of-30 ø areascollapsed (Schiff and Wolfin 1993, In thespring of 1994,the original three were F recordedon several days. In theopinion of Nikula 1995); the upstatebirds were even- joinedby threemore Whoopers that retained aviculturalists,an escapedcaptive bird tuallyrecaptured (E. Brinkley,in litt.), but somegray in theplumage (thus second-year would havea very difficulttime surviving the Long Island birds were not. It was [SY]birds). Theseyounger birds were not both the winter weatherand variouslarge widely assumedin the birdingcommunity seen in summer 1994, althoughat some predators.Of interestin thisregard, a now- thatthe Long Island birds found their way to point in 1994, the Whoopersof Ipswich extirpatedpopulation of some120 feral Mute Massachusetts(Perkins 1993), where they numberedfour adults,and it is thoughtthat Swansin thenearby Paradise Valley of Mon- werethought to haveranged as far initially oneof thethree SY birds may have remained. tananever ventured up intothe harsher envi- as Martha'sVineyard (Nikula 1995). How- Theseswans spent time between Clark Pond ronmentof Yellowstone(McEneaney 2001). ever. a clear connection between the New and Rantoul Pond, with two males eventu- The avicuhuralistsalso expressed the opin- York and Massachusettsbirds (see next sec- ally becomingnest-helpers to nestingMute ion that a captive-bredbird would almost tion) has never been established,and so it is Swans (no hybridization occurred)--at certainlyshow unwary behavior and proba- unclearwhat happenedto the 1993 Long RantoulPond during the 1995through 2002 blyapproach humans for food. Island birds. nestingseasons and at ClarkPond during the 1996through 2001 nestingseasons. Because Historyofnestingferal Whooper Swans ß Massachusetts 1994-2002 thesemales were not matingwith swansof in easternNorth America The saga of Whooper Swans in Essex theirown species and producingyoung, the One reasonfor the difficulty in sortingout recordsof Whooper Swan in eastern North America in recent years,especially the 1990sto thepresent (the period from whichmost reports accrue), is that therehave been multiple instancesof escaped/released WhooperSwans, most on the == = East Coast but several also in = the M•dwest. The accounts belowtreat released Whooper _•-• Swans that were documented to have nested(or believedto havenested and published as such);additionally, there is a report of a feral Whooper Swan that allegedlynested successfullywith a feralTun- dra Swanin Alberta(Table 2).
ß Maryland1970-1973 Figure3.The Whooper Swan atYellowstone (center bird; here 26 November 2003) flocked exclusively withlrumpeter Swans, with which it was thoughttohave arrived from northern Canada, based on neck-collar codes ofseveral flock-mates. Photograph byTerryl•cœneaney. In May 1967.a residentof
VOLUME 58 (2004) NUMBER 2 305 Figure4.The Whooper Swan atYellowstone (center; here 19 December 2003along the Yellowstone Riverin Hayden Valley) spent the winter incompany withmigrant and local Trumpeter Swans, aspecies sometimes considered tobe the ch)sest relative ofthe Whooper. PhotographbyTerryMcEneaney.
Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and At one point, the statewas host to no in New England--possiblythe missing two Wildhfe dected not to removethem (French fewerthan 12 Whooper Swans (seven adults of thesix first seen in EssexCounty in 1994 1997). Ihe only mortalitydocumented in andone brood of fiveyoung), a peakcount (Berry1997). TheseGreat Bay birds even- theEssex County birds was the killing of a that was documentedin Ipswichon 15 tuallydispersed. crippledadult by a nestingpair in early November1998, but sightings of thespecies On 2 February1998, a maleWhooper springof 1996 (I. French,in litt.) and one in Massachusettshave dwindled since 1999, Swanagain visited Great Bay and remained HY bird shotlater that year,but the Clark a yearin which the MassachusettsDivision there,off andon, for a year.By January of PondWhooper most likely died in March of Fisheries and Wildlife and the Animal 1999,that individualhad bonded regularly 2002 (J.Berry, in litt.). RescueLeague of Bostoncaptured and to a humanmale at the site,attacking the Breedingof WhooperSwans was con- vasectomizedthe breeding male Whooper of mangwife and tenant regularly for thenext firmed on two occasions in Massachusetts: theknown pair (13 April;T. French,in litt.). two years,through February 2001, whenit firstat a smallfarm pond along Argilla Road The lastsighting of the speciesin the state waslast seen (fide S. Mirick). The adult male about one km west of Rantoul Pond in camefrom RantoulPond, two adultsseen on ignoredall otherWhoopers in the areathat Ipswichin 1996,when four young fledged, 19 October2002 (J. Berry),w•th no sight- later visited,including a somewhatwary andin 1998,when five young fledged. Both ings subsequentlypublished in Bird femalein August1999 and a flockof six SY of thesenesting records came to lightonly Observer. Whooperson 7 May 1999 at the site-- recently,however, and have not beenprevi- almostcertainly the same six that had visited ouslypublished. Ihe 1996brood was noted ß New Hampshire1997-2001 RantoulPond the month before (fide S. Mir- on Rantoul Pond on 1 and 13 October,but At Hampton,New Hampshire,an adult ick). (Thisbehavior is typicalof a captive the observershad no knowledgethat the maleWhooper Swan that was clearly of cap- human-imprinted bird that has been birdshad been raised locally at thattime (J. tive provenanceturned up at in April and released.) Thus it would seem that the Berry,in/itt.). Laterthat season, this family May 1997; thoughat first thoughtto be Massachusettsand the New Hampshire groupof six birdsin all movedto the Plum from the EssexCounty group, there is swans had come into contact with one Island section of Parker River National strongerevidence to suggestit and at least anotherby 1999(T. French,in litt.). WildlifeRefuge, where present well •nto July threeothers were unintentionally lost by an In anothersimilar instance,an immature 1997 and later. Ihe Massachusetts Division unlicensed collector in Newcastle, New Whooperthat turnedup 25 May 1997 on of Fisheriesand Wildlife attempted to cap- Hampshire(Hunt 1999;T. French,in litt.). GrandMarian Island, New Brunswick stayed ture the birdsin thisyear without success. In earlyJune 1997, an unbandedadult and through1 January1998. Thoughits prove- No othernestings of the specieshave been then later three unbandedSY Whoopers nancewas unknown (usually presumed to documented,though other nestings are sus- turnedup at GreatBay, New Hampshire, not be from Massachusetts),it accepted hand- pected.A groupof six year-oldWhoopers far away and only about 48 km from outsand allowed close approach, as was true seenon Rantoul Pond in April 1999 was Ipswich.Simultaneously, in Massachusetts, of most of the Massachusetts birds. At one assumedretrospectively to have been the mostof the localWhooper Swans (four at point,in lateNovember 1998, it wasrescued offspringof the ArgillaRoad pair--but the Plum Island, two in Ipswich) were froma smallremaining open hole in theice, previousyear produced supposedly five, not accountedfor, thusleading to speculation with the rescueressentially nsking his own six cygnets. abouta secondnesting in 1996somewhere life to saveit (fideB Dalzell). Similartales
306 NORTH AMERICAN BIRD come from Lubec, Maine (very close to Swansin privatecollections_ These collec- Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and GrandManan), where presumably the same tionsare very dynamicenterprises, with Wildlife. Paul E. Lehman, MarshallJ. 11iff, swanspent part of the winterand evaded manytransfers annually. Nevertheless, most and Louis R. Bevier went over the manu- capture,and from Nashua, New Hampshire state-levelnatural resourcesdepartments scriptseveral times and made many helpful and Middlesex, Massachusetts(Table 1). keeptrack of suchcollections, and some are suggestions.as well as diggingout several Mostobservers who approached the escaped willing to share their databaseswith old or obscure references. Thanks also to adultsand subsequentprogeny from the ornithologists.In addition,zoos, aviaries, several aviculturalists for extensive discus- Massachusetts birds found them at least tourist entertainmentfacilities, city parks, sionsabout collectors and escapedbirds; all "unwary"andin most instances rather tame. estates,subdivisions, and various founda- of themwish to remainanonymous for the BetweenMassachusetts and New Hamp- tionsalso have the capacityto be hometo purposesof thispaper. shire, the highest combined total of waterfowlsuch as Whooper Swan, and these WhooperSwans for a singleday was 16 shouldbe investigatedwhere possible. The Literaturecited birdscounted between Essex County (12) International Species Inventory System AmericanBirding Association.1996. ABA andGreat Bay (4) on 10 November1998 (T. (1S1S),an excellenton-line resourceavail- Checklist:Birds of the ContinentalUnited French,in litt.). Given the lack of evidence able free to the public at
VOLUME 58 (2004) NUMBER 2 307 Birds of British Columbia.Volume 4. Atlantic Provinces region. National Salmonsen,E 1950. GronlandsFugle/The University of British Columbia Press, AudubonSociety Field Notes 49: 13-16. Birdsof Greenland.Munksgaard, Copen- Vancouver. Madge,S. and H. Burn 1986.Waterfowl: an hagen,Denmark_ Cole,L. W., andG. McCaskie.2004. Report identificationguide to theducks, geese, and Schiff,S., andA. Wollin.1993. The spring of the California Bird Records Cronmir- swansof the world. HoughtonMifflin, season1993. Region 10: Marine. Kingbird tee: 2002 records. Western Birds 35: 1-33. Boston_ 43: 272. David,N, Y. Aubry,and E Bannon.1999. Martin, R. 2000. Ihe winter season:North- --. 1999_The spring season 1009. Region Ihe nestingseason: Quebec region. North em GreatPlains region. North American 10:Marine. Kingbird 49: 180. American Birds 53: 361-362. Birds 54: 193-194. St. Louis,M. 1995.Whooper Swan at Sum- Davis, R. 1995. Briefs for the files: Winter Maybank,B. 1995. Ihe springmigration: merLake Wildlife Area, Oregon, and Cal- 1993-1994. Chat 59: 28-39. Atlantic Provinces region. National iforniawintenng areas. Oregon Birds 21: Ellison, W.G., and N.L. Martin. 1999. Ihe AudubonSociety Field Notes 49: 221-224. 35-37. fall migration:New Englandregion. McLaren, I. A. 1998. Ihe wtnter season: Sykes,P. W.,Jr., and D. W. Sonnebom.1998. North American Birds 53: 30-34. AtlanticProvinces region_ Field Notes 52: Firstbreeding records of WhooperSwan . 2000. [he fall migration:New Eng- 164-167. and Bramblingin NorthAmerica at Attu land region. North AmericanBirds 54: McEneaney,I. 2001. 2000 YellowstoneBird Island, Alaska. Condor100: 162-164. 26-3O. Report.NPS-YNP publicauon. YCR-NR- Iobish, I. G. 2001. Ihe fall migration: Erickson, R. A., and R. A. Hamilton. 2001. 2001-01.26 pages. Alaskaregion. North American Birds 55: Report ot the CalitbrniaBird Records --. 2004.2003 Yellowstone Birds Report. 889-91. Committee: 1998 records. Western Birds NPS_YNPpublication. YCR-NR-2004-01. Iobish,I. G.,Jr, andM. E. Isleib.1992. Ihe 32: 13-49. 26 pages. nestingseason: Alaska region. American French, T. 1997. The Essex County --. in press.Recent additions to the Yel- Birds 45:1149-1151. WhooperSwans: the MDFW position. lowstone bird checklist. YellowstoneSci- Trochlell,D. 2001. The springmigration: Bird Observer 25: 246-247. ence 12. Idaho-WesternMontana region. North Gibson,D. D_and B. Kessel. 1997. Inventory Mlodinow, S., and B. Iweit. 2001a. Ihe fall American Birds 55: 325-327. of the speciesand subspeciesof Alaska migration:Oregon-Washington region. --. 2003.The fall migration: Idaho-West- birds. Western Birds 28: 45-95. North American Birds 55: 93-97. ern Montanaregion. North American Birds Glover,S. A., S. B. Terrill,D. S. Singer,and --. 200lb. Ihe winter season: Ore- 58: 107-108. D. Roberson. 2001. The winter season: gon-Washingtonregion. North American Turner, L. M. 1885. Notes on the birds of the MiddlePacific Coast region. North Amer- Birds 55: 219-222. Nearer Islands,Alaska. Auk 2: 747-749. ican Birds 55: 223-226. Mlodinow,S., G. Lillie, and B. Iweit. 2001. Tweit, B., and J. Gilligan.1995. The fall Hunt,P 1999.The winter season: New Eng- The winterseason: Oregon-Washington migration: Oregon-Washingtonregion. land region.North American Bitits 53: region. North American Birds 55: NationalAudubon Society Field Notes 49: 143-147. 347-351. 92-95. ---. 2002. The winterseason: New Eng- Nikula, B. 1995. The winter season: New --. 1998. The ih/1migration: Oregon- land region. North AmericanBirds 56: Englandregion. Field Notes 49: 126-130. Washington region. Field Notes 52: 154-157. Palmer•R. S. 1949.Maine birds. Bulletin of 114-118. Jaines,R. D. AnnotatedChecklist of theBirds theMuseum of ComparativeZoology 102 Tweit, B., and B. Tice. 1998. The winter sea- of Ontario.1991. Royal Ontarto Museum, . 1976. Handbook of North American son: Oregon-Washingtonregion. North Toronto. birds. Volume 2: waterfowl. Part 1. Yale American Birds 52: 248-251. Johnson,J. C., and W J L. Sladcn. 1983. UniversityPress, New Haven,Connecti- Wilke, E 1944. Three new bird recordsfor WhooperSwans released in Maryland. cut. St. Paul Island,Alaska. Auk 61: 6554556. MarylandBirdlife 39: 3-4. Parkes,K. C. 1958. Systematicnotes on Williamson,E S. L., W B. Emison,and C. M. Kenyon, K. W. 1961 Birds of Amchitka North American birds: 2. The Waterfowl White. 1971. Amchitka bioenvironmental Island, Alaska. Auk 78: 305-326. (Anatidae). Annals of the Carnegie program.Annual Progress Report. Suti- 1963. Further observations of Muse,m 35: 117-125. diesof the avifaunaon Amchitkaisland, WhooperSwans in the AleutianIslands, Patten,M. 2000. The ChangingSeasons: Alaska.July 1, 1969-June30, 1970.Bat- Alaska. Auk 80: 540-542. warm weather and cross-comincnta/ telle MemortalInstitute, Columbus Labo- Kessel, B., and D_ D. Gibson. 1978. Status wonders. North American Birds 54: ratory,,U. S AECReport MMl-171-131. and distribution of Alaska birds. Studiesin 146-149. Yee,D. G., R. A. Erickson.A. D. Barron,and AvianBiology 1: 1-100. Perkins,S. 1993.The spring migration: New S.E Bailey.1989. The winter season: Mid- Knight,O. W. 1908.The Birds of Maine. C.H England region. American Birds 47: dle PacificCoast region. American Birds Glass,Bangor, Maine. 393-397. 43: 361-364. Koes,R. E, and P.Taylor. 1999. The spring --. 1995. The spring migration:New Yee, D. G., S. E Bailey,and B. E. Deuc/. migration:Prairie Provinces region. Nortk England region. American Birds 49: 1992a.The fall migration:Middle Pacific American Birds 53: 292-293. 227-230. Coast region. American B•rds 46: --. 2000. The springmigration: Prairie --. 1997. The spring migration:New 142-147. Provincesregion. North AmericanBirds Englandregion. Field Notes 51: 844-847. --. 1992b. Ihe winter season: Middle 54: 295-296. Peterjohn,B., and P Davis. 1996. First PacificCoast region. American Birds 46: L•vezey,B.C. 1996.A phylogeneticanalysis reportof the MarylandRecords Commit- 310-313. of geese and swans (Anser/formes: tee.Maryland Birdlife 52: 3-43. Yce,D. G., S.E Bailey,and D_ S. Singer. 1995. Anserinae), including selected fossil Roberson,D. 1986Ninth report of theCali- The winter season: Middle Pacific Coast speciesSystematic Biology 45: 415-450. fornia Bird Records Committee. Western region. NationalAudubon Society Field Macravish,B. 1995. The fall migration: Birds: 17: 49-77. Notes49: 192-195.•
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