Features& Description
The Tundra Swan, whose Latin name is Cygnus colombianus, is the smallest of the swans to be seen on the lake. It has a wingspan of up to 2 meters and a maximum height of 1.27 meters.
Like other swans, its plumage is white, but its neck is shorter. The clearest criterion for recognition is the proportion of yellow and black on the beak: two-thirds black, one-third yellow (the opposite is true of the Whooper Swan).
In young birds, the beak is pale pink and yellow, while the plumage is gray, as in other swans.
Habitat(Biotope)
Tundra Swan breeds in the Arctic tundra across northern Russia. In these breeding areas, it is found in wet marshy meadows. On the lake, in winter, it can be found in groups of a few individuals, fairly far from the shore but not hesitating to approach the edges.
Behavior& habits
Tundra Swans form large flocks with other swan species. They feed on roots and foliage, often on farmland during the day and foraging in the water at night.
They are gregarious in winter, but territorial during the breeding season.
Reproductionand immature
The Tundra Swan builds its nest on the ground. It’s a mound of moss and grass, at a good distance from the water or on an islet. The pair forms at the age of 3 or 4.
The female lays 3 to 5 eggs, which hatch after 30 days.
Cygnets leave the nest as soon as they can swim, staying with their parents until winter migration or the next brood.
Cryor Voice
Tundra Swan has a noisy call, resembling a soft kalxon, followed not by a series of three or four, but by a single or double “klo-klo”.
Bewick Swan Edmund Kennerley
Bewick's swan
