Trumpeter Swans have their name for a good reason … they sound like trumpets!

This morning while enjoying the arrival of some early migrants, Killdeer and Red-Winged Blackbirds, over at the Roy Johnson Mitigation Wetlands, I heard some trumpeting behind me. Two swans had just arrived to stake their claim to a pond which had been ice free for less than 24 hours. I hope you enjoy the short video … with audio … which makes their name quite obvious!

If you’ve never visited the Roy Johnson Mitigation Wetlands and find yourself in the Northland, make the trip. The wetlands are located next to the Cloverland municipal building and garage, 18.5 miles along Wisconsin #13 from the first exit of the US Hwy 2/53 Expressway just out of Superior.

Finally, it was fun to watch a pair of Sandhill Cranes. It was only 2+ weeks ago I visited the Platte River in central Nebraska and saw 460,000+ cranes. Assuming these two were in Kearney, they have flown about 730 miles to reach my wetlands!

Trumpeter Swans

Killdeer

Red-Winged Blackbird