ID Keys: Very large size, all white, mostly yellow bill with black
end
The
Whooper Swan is often considered the Eurasian ecological equivalent to North
America's Trumpeter Swan. They once used to breed in eastern
Greenland, but are now considered only vagrants in North America.
Records have largely been of overwintering birds, with most sightings in
northeastern North America and Alaska. It is currently unclear whether
some sightings in North America are in fact captive escapees, although many
are undoubtedly of wild origin.
Habitat
Breeding habitat is usually wetland
habitat hear large freshwater lakes, usually with large amounts of
herbaceous, emergent vegetation. They are also found in wetland
habitats and large water bodies in migration and in winter, and will also
utilize agricultural lands for foraging.
Diet
Predominantly vegetarian, feeding on roots,
leaves, and stems of aquatic plants, as well as terrestrial grasses, sedges,
roots, and tubers. On their breeding grounds, fledglings and young
birds will also often eat aquatic and terrestrial insects and insect larvae.
Adult Whooper Swans will sometimes supplement their diet with fresh and
saltwater mollusks. In migration and during the winter months, waste
grain and other vegetative material from agricultural fields may make up a
large portion of the diet.
Nesting
Whooper Swans mate for life. Both
parents will help to construct the nest, typically a large mound of
vegetation found near the banks of a water body. The female alone
incubates the eggs. Both parents will tend to the young after
hatching, but the young quickly leave the nest and find their own food.
Song
A very deep, strong honking.
Migration
Whooper Swans breed in subarctic
portions of Europe and Asia, and winter in northern Europe and eastern Asia.
