Swans are very popular birds in Alaska, in the summer you can see them here and there usually swimming in small ponds and water areas. They are stunningly beautiful.
Arriving in Alaska, mating season in late April
Picture by Richard Mitchell
They usually weigh around 21-30 pounds, tho the males can exceed 35 pounds. They have a wingspan of over 7 feet. Standing on the ground the Trumpeter Swan stands around 4 feet high.
Trumpeter Swans were identified in 1850 in Alaska. But they didn’t realize until 1954that they were breeding in Alaska. In 1968 the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service counted 2,844 Trumpeters.
They were removed from the National Endangered Species List, but they are still classified as rare in some other states. The Census in 1990 resulted in a count of 13,000 Trumpeters in Alaska, which is considered to be 80% of the world’s Trumpeter Swan population, and it has continued to increase to this very day.
Swans mate for life…Usually when they are around 2 years old, but they do not breed until the third, forth or fifth year. When ready to breed they begin to nest in as early as the spring melt will permit in April
They usually weigh around 21-30 pounds, tho the males can exceed 35 pounds. They have a wingspan of over 7 feet. Standing on the ground the Trumpeter Swan stands around 4 feet high.
Trumpeter Swans were identified in 1850 in Alaska. But they didn’t realize until 1954that they were breeding in Alaska. In 1968 the U. S. Fish and Wildlife Service counted 2,844 Trumpeters.
They were removed from the National Endangered Species List, but they are still classified as rare in some other states. The Census in 1990 resulted in a count of 13,000 Trumpeters in Alaska, which is considered to be 80% of the world’s Trumpeter Swan population, and it has continued to increase to this very day.
Swans mate for life…Usually when they are around 2 years old, but they do not breed until the third, forth or fifth year. When ready to breed they begin to nest in as early as the spring melt will permit in April
Trumpeter Swan Pair
Picture by Richard Mitchell
The female lays 2 to seven eggs, tho 4 is the average over a 5-12 day period. The female trumpeter (Pen) takes care of the nesting, her lifetime mate (Cob) watches over her and guards the nest.
They take turns incubating the eggs. It is during this time that the male (Cob) goes into molt, losing his wing feathers, rendering him flightless for approximately a month
There’s about 31-35 days of incubation before the baby Swans (Cygnets) hatch. The baby Swans (Cygnets) hatch in June and they weigh around 7 ounces and are grey in color when their feathers grow in. They turn white after their second molt, approximately 2 years.
Then for the next 11-15 weeks the swan pair guards their Cygnets until they have fledged (fly). Predators of the Cygnets are snapping turtles, Great Homed Owls, Mink, Raccoons, Coyotes, and Red Fox in the wild. It is during this time that the adult female (Pen) goes into molt losing her wing feathers and cannot fly for approximately a month.
The female lays 2 to seven eggs, tho 4 is the average over a 5-12 day period. The female trumpeter (Pen) takes care of the nesting, her lifetime mate (Cob) watches over her and guards the nest.
They take turns incubating the eggs. It is during this time that the male (Cob) goes into molt, losing his wing feathers, rendering him flightless for approximately a month
There’s about 31-35 days of incubation before the baby Swans (Cygnets) hatch. The baby Swans (Cygnets) hatch in June and they weigh around 7 ounces and are grey in color when their feathers grow in. They turn white after their second molt, approximately 2 years.
Then for the next 11-15 weeks the swan pair guards their Cygnets until they have fledged (fly). Predators of the Cygnets are snapping turtles, Great Homed Owls, Mink, Raccoons, Coyotes, and Red Fox in the wild. It is during this time that the adult female (Pen) goes into molt losing her wing feathers and cannot fly for approximately a month.
Adult Trumpeter Swans, with yearling Swans (grey color)
Picture by Richard Mitchell
In the summer months the Swans eat foliage, seeds and various marsh plants namely horsetail, pondweeds, sedge, bulrush, water milfoil, widgeon grass, and pond lily. They live up to their names with a deep French horn/Trumpet like sound when they call.
Recently, eggs from Alaskan Trumpeter Swans have been sent to several Midwestern states where restoration programs are establishing nesting Swans where they have not been seen in 100 years.
In the summer months the Swans eat foliage, seeds and various marsh plants namely horsetail, pondweeds, sedge, bulrush, water milfoil, widgeon grass, and pond lily. They live up to their names with a deep French horn/Trumpet like sound when they call.
Recently, eggs from Alaskan Trumpeter Swans have been sent to several Midwestern states where restoration programs are establishing nesting Swans where they have not been seen in 100 years.
Click here to learn more about the Trumpeter Swans
CU
9 comments:
What a great post. I never knew about the connection of the Trumpeters and Alaska. I was amazed that you have so many there. Also I love that they mate for life. I knew that but I find it fascinating. Also the various times that both male and female molt. I wondered if it's designed to keep them grounded. I just found that interesting. I always loved their long graceful necks. I wonder if they evolved that way as they can more easily see predators coming and they can also reach for food more easily. Richard Mitchell's photos are exquisite.
Hope all is well in your neck of the woods. I just put my garden in. I ran late this year but the growing season here in the Southwest is long so it usually still flourishes. Planted green beans, lettuce, swiss chard, dill, parsley, watercress, chives, tons of sunflowers and other flowers, squash, cukes, etc. I love gardening. It and photography help me leave the stress of work behind.
Hugs and happy summer.
First visit, I am really glad to have come cross it (saw you on BlogCatalog)..I must say the title seduced me to come over.
I think I am a fan already. I'll be visiting again no doubt.
Trumpeters are gorgeous birds and the photos of them that you have posted are outstanding.
I hope your summer solstice is a happy and warm one. Although our temperatures are warm the wetness just goes on and on. We had such a wet spring and now it looks like we may have a wet summer too.
Gardens are in, tourists have begun to arrive and the work in the studio has picked up to a point where my house and blogging are falling behind.
Best wishes K,
TT
Very good and interesting post. Pictures are just beautiful. Regards from warm Mediterranean. Philip
Thanks for the comments on my blog. Great to know that you are from Alaska. I watch sometime about it in N.GEO TV. I'll be visiting ur blog again
Happy Fourth of Jyly. Enjoy it!
i luv ur pics posting..really cool site. Cheers!
This was so interesting. Thanks for coming over to my silly blog. I hope I can get my tushie to Alaska some day. It looks amazing.
Thanks for following. I like the new look of your blog and as usual your articles about the swans and other wild life pictures are exquisite. I missed watching the swans on lake Ontario in the early spring and summer from my apartment window with a lakeside view or walking on the boardwalk but they were not Trumpeters.
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