Swans
Swans are large, long-necked aquatic birds with short legs and webbed feet. They belong to the family Anatidae, along with the duck and goose. Swans are most closely related to geese, both groups differing from ducks anatomically and in the absence of bright or metallic colors in their plumage.
Trumpeter Swans
© Greg Winston Photo
The most common species native to North America, the whistling swan, Cygnus columbianus columbianus, has a black bill and nests north of the Arctic Circle. The other North American form, the trumpeter swan, Cygnus cygnus buccinator, formerly nested throughout the continent, but excessive hunting in the last century has limited it to scattered areas. Bewick's swan, Cygnus columbianus bewickii, is the Old World counterpart of the whistling swan, and the larger whooper swan, Cygnus cygnus cygnus, of Eurasia is the counterpart of the trumpeter.
Swans feed mainly on aquatic vegetation. Their strong bills have serrated edges and a nail at the tip, and the surface of the tongue is spinous, all of which aid in grasping and tearing plants. Horny serrations in the bill help in filtering small food items from the water surface, but swans most often feed from the bottom of ponds. Swans generally mate for life, with both sexes building the nest and caring for the young. In some species both sexes also incubate the eggs. Most swans migrate after the breeding season.
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