Trumpeter Pair

The Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) is the largest of the swans in the United States. They measure about 60 inches in length, and about 26 pounds... more

by Morris Finkelstein

Title

Trumpeter Pair

Artist

Morris Finkelstein

Medium

Photograph

Description

The Trumpeter Swan (Cygnus buccinator) is the largest of the swans in the United States. They measure about 60 inches in length, and about 26 pounds in weight. They prefer wooded ponds, marshes, flooded farm fields, and rivers. The all-white Trumpeter Swan is distinguished from the smaller Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus) by its longer, all-black bill with a straighter base, and by the absence of the yellow spot (lores) before the eye. Trumpeter Swans are known to mix with other species of swans. This species was near extinction in the 1930's, and was preserved by reintroduction and conservation methods. From 1968 until 2010, the population of Trumpeter Swans increased from 3,722 to about 46,225 birds. Trumpeter Swans usually mate for life, and live for more than 24 years in the wild.

This pair of Trumpeter Swans standing in shallow water and preening was photographed in morning light at the Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary, in West Alton, Missouri on 11-10-2019. There were about 60 birds in the flock on this day. I used a Nikon D850 camera body and a Nikkor 500mm f/4.0E FL ED VR2 telephoto lens to capture this image. Settings: 1/2500 sec, f/6.3, ISO 500. This 3,700 acre sanctuary located on the Mississippi River watershed is managed jointly by the Audubon Center at Riverlands and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

I am honored that my photograph was featured in the Fine Art America groups:
Animal Photographs, 11-16-2019
Animals, 11-16-2019
FAA Portraits - Birds, 11-17-2019
Ducks Geese And Swans Only, 11-17-2019
Images That Excite You, 11-17-2019
USA Photographers Only, 11-18-2019
FAA Portraits, 11-22-2019
A Birding Group - Wings, 11-23-2019
Birds In Focus, 11-23-2019
10 Plus, 11-29-2019
Animal Mania, 12-10-2019
Midwest America Photography, 12-15-2019
The World We See Group, 12-18-2019
Wildlife One-A-Day, 12-18-2019
Water Forms, 1-13-2020
Nikon Full Frame Cameras, 3-25-2020, 11-15-2019

KEYWORDS: trumpeter pair, trumpeter swan, cygnus buccinator, swan, waterfowl, water bird, shore bird, bird, avian, wild, wildlife, nature, natural, outdoors, wings, feathers, plumage, white, neck, black bill, large, migratory, graceful, standing, perched, perching, looking, watching, two, pair, companions, river, wetlands, water, morning, midwest, midwestern, autumn, fall, riverlands migratory bird sanctuary, west alton, missouri, mississippi river watershed, morris finkelstein, st. louis, missouri, photograph, digital, horizontal, portrait, close up, nikon d850, photography

Uploaded

November 14th, 2019