Syracuse.com - Trumpeter swans making comeback in CNY, and in other areas across the state

[HuntingNY-News]

These birds, with wingspans up to 7 feet, were once nearly extinct.

Dick Blume/The Post-StandardTrumpeter swans at the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge

Trumpeter swans, the largest waterfowl in North America, have made a remarkable comeback from near extinction in recent years — and some have taken up residence on or near the Montezuma National Wildlife Refuge.

“On the refuge this year, we had three pairs that successfully had young,” said Linda Ziemba, a wildlife biologist at the refuge.

In the 1800s, the birds were heavily hunted across the country for their meat and their feathers. Their largest flight feathers made the best quill pens, according to Kevin McGowen, an ornithologist at the Cornell Lab.

Their population reached a low point in the early 1930s when biologists discovered there were only 69 known trumpeters in Yellowstone National Park. Fortunately, a group of the birds, numbering a couple of thousand, were discovered in Alaska. Hunting was stopped, and their population has been coming back, particularly in recent years.

A trumpeter swan can easily be distinguished from the non-native, invasive mute swan by their dark-colored bills. Mute swans have almost entirely orange bills, with black knobs on adult birds.

Adult trumpeter swans have wingspans of 7 feet. The male birds average 28 pounds; the females, 22 pounds. Their eggs are five inches long.

Beginning in 1968, the Trumpeter Swan Society, a non-profit group, successfully pushed for trumpeter swans to be reintroduced in various states across the country. There was also a project to bring back the birds in Ontario, Canada.

New York did not get on that bandwagon. However, the first nesting pair was spotted in this state in the late 1980s at the Perch River Wildlife Management Area near Watertown. Shortly after, another nesting pair was noted on private land within the Montezuma Wetlands Complex.

There are two theories on why there are trumpeter swans in this state — and specifically in this area. One is that the birds migrated from Canada and decided to stay. Another is that they came from Savannah Dhu, the 5,000-acre nature preserve owned by mall mogul Bob Congel in Wayne County. The adult birds Congel originally brought in there had their wings clipped, but the young didn’t and escaped, McGowen said.

The DEC’s last survey of trumpeter swans was done in 2010, when 10 breeding pairs, seven with young, were documented. This was the highest known count to date.

Last year, DEC staff put green wing tags on a trumpeter swan family group (two adults and five young) on state land north of the Montezuma refuge, and on several birds at the Perch River Wildlife Management Area to learn more about their movements. If you see one, send an email to [email protected].

View the full article on The Syracuse Outdoors Blog