Trumpeter Swans (Cygnus buccinator)

Back lit in a fiery-like glowing mist rising from a mountain stream, a family of trumpeter swans take flight at early dawn.

Facts: The Trumpeter Swan is the largest waterfowl species native to North America. Most Trumpeters weigh 21-30 pounds, although large males may exceed 35 pounds. The male is called a cob; the female is called a pen. With a wingspan over 7 feet, these snow-white birds are truly spectacular. Standing on the ground, an adult Trumpeter stands about 4 feet high.

Trumpeter Swans belong to the avian Order Anseriformes, Family Anatidae, along with ducks and geese. Trumpeters have broad, flat bills with fine tooth-like serrations along the edges that strain water when the birds eat aquatic vegetation. Their long necks allow them to uproot plants in 4 feet of water. Trumpeters are often confused with the far more common Tundra Swan (formerly Whistling Swan, Cygnus columbianus), the only other native swan that occurs regularly in North America. Tundra Swans can be seen in the upper Midwest during spring and fall migration.

Observers have described the Trumpeter's call as resonant, deep and loud, sonorous, and trumpet-like. Hence the bird's name: Trumpeter Swan. The Tundra Swan has a high-pitched, quavering call resembling that of a Canada Goose (Branta canadensis) or Snow Goose (Chen caerulescens). From a distance the calls of a flock of Tundra Swans may be likened to the sound of a pack of baying hounds or distant 'whoops' and 'hollers.' Becoming familiar with these calls will aid identification.