Texas Waterfowl

Tundra Swan

35 Their numbers hit a modern high in 2005 with 34,803 swans. Their population trend is increasing. Trumpeter Swans breed in Alaska and western Canada and locally in the mountain West, northern plains, and midwestern United States. Breeding pairs use freshwater marshes, prairie wetlands, lakes, ponds, and rivers.They nest on the ground, in emergent vegetation (overwater nests), or in moist areas along wetland edges. They may locate nests on beaver lodges or muskrat mounds. Females typically lay 4–6 eggs. Both members of the pair share incubation duties. They mate for life but will repair if their mate is lost. Breeding Trumpeter Swans primarily forage on submersed aquatic vegetation (for example, pondweed) and other wetland plants. Most winter in western Canada and in the northwestern United States. Scattered flocks also winter in the Intermountain West, and small numbers winter in the central United States. Trumpeter Swans that winter in the central United States likely originate from northern plains or midwestern states. Wintering swans use shallow estuaries, freshwater ponds, lakes, and rivers. Their diet includes aquatic vegetation, terrestrial grasses, and agricultural grains. Adults are white and have a black eye, black bill, and black legs and feet. Adults may have a few gray feathers on their head and neck. Males and females are identical. First-winter Trumpeter Swans have a gray-tinged head, neck, and back. Trumpeter Swans are the largest North American waterfowl and one of the heaviest flying birds in the world, weighing up to 30 pounds. SOURCES Hansen et al. 1971; Bellrose 1980; Mitchell 1994; Matteson et al. 1995; Burgess and Burgess 1997; Seyffert 2001; Lockwood and Freeman 2004; NAWMP 2004; Dean 2005; Moser 2006. TUNDRA SWAN Cygnus columbianus Tundra Swans are rare to very rare in Texas. They potentially occur throughout the state, but are most often observed in the northeastern High Plains and northern Rolling Plains. Most Tundra Swans found in Texas are first-winter birds, and flocks of more than three are rare. Larger groups have been reported irregularly in Hemphill and Donley Counties . Most observations occur between late October and mid-March. They were potenswans 36 tially more common in Texas before 1900. Tundra Swans were collected as part of ornithological expeditions in Lee County in 1888 and near Brownsville in 1878. Multiple sources also suggest they were common along the coast of nearby Tamaulipas, Mexico. Tundra Swans breed in arctic regions of the United States and Canada. Breeding pairs use tundra wetlands, particularly those with abundant pondweed. They mate for life but will re-pair if their mate is lost. They nest on the ground, often on hummocks in wet meadows and on islands. Females typically lay 3–5 eggs. Both males and females incubate. Most Tundra Swans migrate through interior North America in family groups. They winter along the west coast of the United States, locally in the Intermountain West, and along the central Atlantic coast (Chesapeake Bay area). They were historically abundant in Mexico, although only a few currently winter there. Wintering birds mainly use shallow estuaries, freshwater ponds, lakes, and rivers. Their diet includes leafy vegetation, tubers, rhizomes, submersed aquatic vegetation (for example, pondweed), agricultural grains, and mollusks. Males and females average 15.9 and 13.9 pounds, respectively, and are identical in appearance. They are white and have a black eye, black bill, and black legs and feet. Most Tundra Swans have a small yellow marking in front of their eye. Firstwinter Tundra Swans have a gray-tinged head, neck, and back. They generally have Tundra Swan (adult). Photograph courtesy of Arthur Morris/VIREO, taken June 15, 2003, Nome, Alaska. 37 whiter body plumage than first-winter Trumpeter Swans. In 2011 their population was 174,000. Since 2000 their numbers have fluctuated from year to year, but their population is stable. This species was formerly known as Whistling Swan. The name was changed when that taxon was lumped with Bewick’s Swan (C. c. bewickii), which breed in Europe and Asia. SOURCES Merrill 1878; Singley 1892; Limpert et al. 1987; Pulich 1988; Limpert and Earnst 1994; Drewien and Benning 1997; Seyffert 2001; Earnst and Rothe 2004; Lockwood and Freeman 2004; NAWMP 2004; Badzinski 2005; USFWS 2011. MUSCOVY DUCK Cairina moschata Domestic Muscovy Ducks are common throughout the Americas and much of the world. Today , domestic forms are larger than their wild counterparts, with bright red facial skin and more white plumage. The exact timing of...