Cygnus buccinator
The Trumpeter Swan, Cygnus buccinator, is the largest waterfowl species native to North America, an avian titan boasting an impressive wingspan that can exceed 10 feet and weights often surpassing 30 pounds. Adults are instantly recognizable by their immaculate white plumage, contrasting sharply with their large, entirely black bill, which often features a distinctive salmon-pink line or patch along the lower mandible, setting them apart from the similar Tundra Swan. Their massive size, often...
Trumpeter Swans primarily inhabit shallow freshwater wetlands, including large, undisturbed lakes, ponds, marshes, and slow-moving rivers, particularly those with abundant aquatic vegetation. They favor low-elevation regions but can be found in mountain valleys up to 6,000 feet.
Their diet primarily consists of the submerged parts of aquatic vegetation, including tubers, roots, stems, and leaves of plants like pondweeds and sedges. They also consume aquatic invertebrates, especially during the breeding season.
Trumpeter Swans are diurnal, spending their days foraging and often roosting on open water at night, particularly during winter. Their foraging strategy involves dabbling and upending in shallow water, using their long necks to reach submerged vegetation and invertebrates. During the breeding sea...
The breeding range of Trumpeter Swans extends across western and central North America, primarily in Alaska, the Yukon, British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and Manitoba in Canada, as well as parts of the Pacific Northwest (Washington, Oregon), the northern Rocky Mountains (Montana, Wyoming, ...
Least Concern
- The Trumpeter Swan is the heaviest flying bird native to North America, with males sometimes exceeding 35 pounds. - They possess the longest windpipe of any swan species, which coils into their sternum, creating their distinctive deep, bugling call. - Trumpeter Swans were once nearly extinct, w...