Mute Swan

Cygnus olor

Order ANSERIFORMES - Family ANATIDAE - Subfamily Anserinae

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Habitat
7. Food
8. Behavior
9. Reproduction
10. Conservation Status
11. Other Names

A native of northern and central Eurasia, the Mute Swan was introduced into North America to grace the ponds of parks and estates. Escaped individuals have established breeding populations in several areas, where their aggressive behavior threatens native waterfowl.

Cool Facts

• Downy young Mute Swans (called cygnets) come in two color morphs: a gray form and a white form. The gray (or "Royal") chicks start off with gray down and grow in gray-brown and white feathers, giving them a mottled look. White (or "Polish") chicks have all white down and juvenal feathers. Adults of the white morph may have pink or gray legs and feet instead of black, but otherwise the adults look alike.
• The Mute Swan is reported to mate for life. However, changing of mates does occur infrequently, and swans will remate if their partner dies. If a male loses his mate and pairs with a young female, she joins him on his territory. If he mates with an older female, they go to hers. If a female loses her mate, she remates quickly and usually chooses a younger male.

• The black knob at the base of the male Mute Swan's bill swells during the breeding season and becomes noticeably larger than the female's. The rest of the year the difference between the sexes is not obvious.

Description

• Size: 127-152 cm (50-60 in)
• Wingspan: 208-238 cm (82-94 in)
• Weight: 5500-14300 g (194.15-504.79 ounces)

• Large, all-white waterfowl.
• Long, curved neck.
• Orange bill and black face.

Sex Differences

Sexes look alike, male slightly larger and with larger knob on bill.

Immature

Dirty gray or white. Legs gray or pinkish. Bill gray or tan, turning pinkish. Bill knob lacking or small. Lores white and feathered, turning black.

Similar Species

• Tundra Swan and Trumpeter Swan have all black bills without knobs and straight necks. Juveniles have pink bills, but show varying amounts of black as they age.
• Snow Goose smaller and with shorter neck, black wingtips, pink bill.
• Domestic goose smaller, with shorter neck, and pink or orange legs.
• White Pelican has short neck, large yellow or orange bill, orange legs, and black flight feathers.

Sound

Not mute. Calls quiet and do not carry. A snorting "heorrr." Hisses aggressively. Wings make singing noise in flight.

»listen to songs of this species

Range

Summer Range

Introduced. Resident along Atlantic Coast from New Hampshire southward to Virginia, around the Great Lakes, and in Pacific Northwest. Captives and escapees may be seen throughout North America. Native across Eurasia.

Habitat

Prefers shallow coastal ponds, estuaries, ponds, bogs, and streams flowing into lakes.

Food

Aquatic plants and some aquatic animals.

Behavior

Foraging

Tips-up to reach submerged aquatic vegetation.

Reproduction

Nest Type

Nest an open bowl in a large mound of aquatic vegetation, grasses, and rushes, lined with softer vegetation and a little down. Usually placed on mound on bank, island, or reed bed.

Egg Description

Blue-green when laid, turn white, then brown with staining.

Clutch Size

Usually 5-8 eggs. Range: 1-11.

Condition at Hatching

Covered with down and eyes open. Leaves nest within 24 hours of hatching and has the ability to swim and feed.

Conservation Status

As an introduced species it is of concern because of its effects on native wildlife. Its aggressive nature can disrupt the nesting of native waterfowl. It is protected in some states, but not others. Some states are attempting to control Mute Swan numbers.

Other Names

Cygne tuberculé (French)
Cisne vulgar (Spanish)

Sources used to construct this page:

1. Ciaranca, M. A., C. C. Allin, and G. S. Jones. 1997. Mute Swan (Cygnus olor). In The Birds of North America, No. 273 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA, and The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C.
2. Cramp, S., and K. E. L. Simmons (eds.) 1977. The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Vol. I. Oxford University Press, Oxford.