Trumpeter Duet

After hearing George Lepp talk about the trumpeter swans at the Sunriver Nature Center, I went down there last Saturday morning to see what I could photograph. This photo doesn't really qualify as a portrait, I don't think, so I can't submit it for the "animal portraits" theme critique. But it was a fun shot from that morning, so I thought I'd share it here. I believe these two are Gus and Gracie, the male and female adults. Gus was flown in from a bird sanctuary in Michigan after the previous male was illegally shot and killed by a hunter. Gus and Gracie quickly took to each other and had three babies ("cygnets") last summer. They were all here on this morning, but the nearly full grown cygnets are out of the frame. Trumpeter swans have a loud and distinctive honk, hence the name. They were honking big time during this animated, wing-flapping display, which lasted 15 seconds or so. Not sure if it was a dust-up, spirited play, or maybe choreographed mood setting for making a few more cygnets!