Tundra swans
● Start to arrive around mid-May, leave for winter
the end of September
Ecology of tundra swans
● In summer – aquatic vegetation – mannagrass,
pondweeds, marine eelgrass
● Also eat some grass on dry land, leftover grains
and oteher crops
● Breeding season – tend to be territorial and
agressive
● Few natural predators – brown bears, foxes
Reproduction
● Mate in the late springs
● Pair monogamously until one partner dies
● Nesting season starts at the end of the May
● The pair build the large mound-shaped nest
from plant material at an elevant site near open
water
Conservation status
● Most common swan species of North America
● Tundra swan numbers are stable over most of
its range, but they are increasingly depent on
agricultural crops to supplement teir winter diet
● The tundra swan is not considered threatened