A rare trumpeter swan — normally seen in the northwestern United States, Canada and some parts of the upper Midwest — has taken up residence on the French Broad River.

SEQUIM — This winter, locals can look to Sequim’s skies and waters for booming trumpeter swan populations. “They’ve definitely been rising in recent years,” said Bob Boekelheide of the Olympic ...

He's a 64-year-old veterinarian from Berlin, Somerset County, who has been counting birds since the early 1980s as part of the Audubon Christmas Bird Count.

Sequim seeing rise in swan population FILE - In this Dec. 8, 2017, file photo, a pair of trumpeter swans fly over their winter grounds in Conway, Wash. This winter, locals can look to Sequim’s ...

SEQUIM — Twenty-four volunteers are working to monitor the Sequim trumpeter swan population, which has increased to as many as 200 birds from the four that were counted in 1982, according to the ...

In 1932, trumpeter swan numbers dwindled to about 70. But efforts in many northern states have increased the population to about 16,000, 13,000 of which are in Alaska.

Swan, along with the other 350 or so members of the Choctawhatchee Audubon Society, appreciates the natural treasures of the Florida Panhandle.