🐾 Mute Swan

Mute Swan

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Who it is

• Scientific name: Cygnus olor
• Family & relatives: A large waterbird in the family Anatidae; its relatives are other swans, geese, and ducks.
• How to spot it: A big, graceful white bird with a long curved neck and an orange bill with a black knob on top.

Its body & abilities

• Size: About 1.4 to 1.6 m long with a wingspan of 2 to 2.4 m.
• Weight: Around 10 to 12 kg, one of the heaviest flying birds.
• Body & adaptations: It has webbed feet for paddling and a long neck that lets it reach plants deep under the water.
• Top speed: It glides calmly on the water but can fly fast at about 50 to 90 km/h once it is airborne.
• Strength: It is strong enough to run across the water while flapping its big wings to lift off into the air.
• Senses: It has sharp eyesight and good hearing to watch over its family and to notice danger.
• Growing up: Fluffy gray cygnets hatch able to swim, sometimes ride on their parents' backs, and turn white as they grow up.

Where it lives

• Habitat: Calm lakes, ponds, rivers, and marshes with plenty of water plants.
• Where in the world: Native to Europe and Asia, and introduced to North America and other places.
• Territory: A pair defends a stretch of water around its nest, especially while it is raising young.

What it eats

• Diet: A plant eater that reaches underwater for its food and drinks the fresh water it swims in.
• Favorite foods: Water plants, roots, and grasses, plus small amounts of insects and snails.
• How it hunts: It tips its head and neck underwater, called dabbling, to pull up tender water plants.

How it behaves

• How it moves: It swims smoothly with webbed feet, walks a bit clumsily on land, and flies in a strong straight line.
• When it is active: Active mostly by day, feeding and gliding on the water, and resting with its head tucked back.
• Family life: Often seen in pairs or family groups; a group of swans is called a bevy, or a wedge when in flight.
• How it talks: Despite its name it is not silent, using soft snorts, hisses, and grunts, plus loud beating wings.
• Babies: Swans often pair for life; the female lays about five to seven eggs and both parents guard the nest.

Its place in nature

• Role in nature: It helps keep waterways healthy by trimming plants; foxes and large birds may take its eggs or young.
• Conservation: Listed as Least Concern by the IUCN, with healthy and stable numbers.
• Dangers: Dies from predators taking the young, flying into power lines, and harsh winters.

Life & legacy

• How long it lives: About 10 to 12 years in the wild and up to around 30 years in rare cases.
• In our culture: A worldwide symbol of grace and love, and the star of the ballet Swan Lake and the Ugly Duckling story.
• Where to see it: City park ponds, lakes, and rivers across Europe, and many parks in North America.
• Fun fact: A baby swan is called a cygnet, and it can start swimming within a day of hatching.