Mute Swan
Cygnus Olor
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Family: Anatidae
Length: 56-62 inches long
Wingspan: 7 – 8 feet
Description: The mute swan was brought here from Europe. Easy to recognize by their orange bills with black nasal knob, and slender s shaped necks. Their body feathers are all perfect white and they have black legs and feet. Adult male and female look the same. The mail is called a cob and the female a pen. They are not really mute; they make hissing and barking like noises.
Habits: These swans are fond on ponds and bay areas. They are at home in water and very clumsy on land. A pair enjoys a large area to themselves, sometimes as much as ten acres. The male defends this area during nesting and young rearing.
Diet: Swans plunge their long neck into the water and feed on aquatic plants.
Mating: Swans mate for life.
Nest: A large nest is made near the waters edge. During this time and until the cygnets (young) have flown away the male will defend his large water area in a very aggressive way. Small waterfowl will be tolerated but larger ones like the Canadian geese will be chased off of the area. Strangely, herons are not harassed but egrets are.
There are usually four to six eggs laid and they will hatch in about 38 days. The cygnets are gray (occasionally white) and fuzzy and go into the water in a day or two. By fall they have been taught to fly by the parents and are soon run off by the male.
Migration: They do not migrate.
Whitin Pond: A pair is on the pond all year around
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