Species

Tundra swan

Cygnus columbianus

A big white swan of the far north that reaches Georgia only occasionally in winter.

Photo Unknown photographer (opens in a new tab) / iNaturalist, CC0 1.0 (opens in a new tab)

Migration

At a glance

Size: About 1.2 to 1.5 m long; wingspan about 1.9 m
Weight: About 4 to 9 kg
Habitat: Lakes, reservoirs and large ponds in winter
Diet: Aquatic plants, roots, tubers and waste grain
In Georgia: A rare winter visitor, usually one or a few birds on a lake
Voice: A high, soft, whistling "woo-ho"
Rabies vector: No

Identification

Key marks: All white; black bill, usually with a small yellow spot in front of the eye; straight neck held upright
Young: Grey-brown with a pinkish bill
Told apart from: Mute swan, an escaped or feral bird, which has an orange bill with a black knob and often holds its neck in an S-curve
Told apart from: Snow goose, which is much smaller with black wingtips
Where to look: Large reservoirs and lakes, December to February

Behaviour

Tundra swans feed by reaching below the surface with their long necks to pull up roots and plants. They migrate in family groups, and the young stay with their parents all winter. Most of the eastern population winters on the Chesapeake Bay and in North Carolina, and Georgia birds are usually strays from those flocks.

Why they matter

Tundra swans make one of the longest migrations of any North American waterfowl, from the Arctic coast to the mid-Atlantic, stopping at the same lakes year after year. Their need for large, undisturbed wetlands along the way makes them a measure of how well that chain of wetlands is holding up.

Reproduction and lifecycle

Nest — A large mound of plants near water on the tundra
Eggs — Usually three to five
Incubation — About 31 to 40 days
Cygnets — Leave the nest soon after hatching, guarded by both parents
Flight — At about two to three months
Pairs — Usually for life
Lifespan — Wild birds over twenty years are recorded

Living around people

A swan on a Georgia lake in winter is as likely to be a wild tundra swan as an escaped mute swan; a wild one keeps its distance.
Swans hit power lines in poor light; a swan grounded near a road or line may be injured.

Misconceptions

Any swan in Georgia is someone's pet. Wild tundra swans reach the state in most winters.

Related species

Seasonal activity

When this species is breeding, and when there are nests on the ground. Mowing during the shaded months is how most nests are found.

Breeding and active nests by month for this species
	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec
Breeding	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Active nests	Jan: no	Feb: no	Mar: no	Apr: no	May: no	Jun: no	Jul: no	Aug: no	Sep: no	Oct: no	Nov: no	Dec: no
Notes	Wintering	Wintering; some start north	Migrating north	Moving north through the Great Lakes region	Nesting in the Arctic	Incubating	Cygnets hatched	Cygnets growing	Young learning to fly	Migration south begins	Arriving on the mid-Atlantic coast	A few reach Georgia

Where it lives

Recorded in 42 states and provinces. Each one links to the other animals there, and to the rehabilitators licensed for them.

Canada

If you found one

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