Mute swans, or Cygnus olor, are large white birds that live on water. Despite their size, they are graceful swimmers and can also fly. The mute swan has a long s-shaped neck and an orange bill with a black knob at the base. The male mute swan is known as a cob, whereas the female is called a pen. Male mute swans are slightly larger than females. Young mute swans are called cygnets.
Facts About Mute Swans
Mute swans are about 1.5 metres long, with a wingspan of over 2 metres. They are found in the British Isles, Northern Europe, North America, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Mute swans inhabit ponds, lakes, marshes, rivers, canals and estuaries, either living together in pairs or with flocks of other swans.
Mute swans eat aquatic vegetation, grass, insects, mollusks, worms, small fish and frogs. They are able to use their long necks to forage beneath the water’s surface for food. Mute swans will also take bread thrown to them by humans, and will often veer towards people who are standing at the water’s edge in anticipation they may receive food.
As their name suggests, mute swans are mostly silent, but are capable of making snorting sounds and hissing. These large birds are generally placid in nature, but can become aggressive when threatened. Mute swans are very capable of defending themselves and their territories with their large wings, beaks and necks.
Mute Swan Cygnets
Mute swans are able to breed at around three years old. Once a mute swan has found itself a partner, it often mates with the same swan for life. A breeding pair will build a nest at the edge of the water out of dried grass, reeds and other plant matter. Although the female does most of the nest building, the male assists with collecting nesting materials and egg incubation. Approximately seven eggs will be laid in April or May.
Mute swan eggs take around 35 to 41 days to hatch. The newly hatched cygnets are small and greyish-brown, not white like their parents. Mute swans take good care of their offspring, protecting them closely, and can sometimes be seen with very young cygnets riding on their backs.
The cygnets will stay with their parents for five to six months until they begin to gain their white feathers, after which time they will be driven away by the adults. Alternatively the cygnets and their parents may remain together with other mute swans over the winter.
Mute Swan Predators and Threats
Mute swans do not have many natural enemies, except for foxes, and unfortunately humans, some of whom appear to take an irrational dislike to swans and may attempt to harm them.
Other possible threats to mute swans include:
- Pollution of freshwater areas
- Lead poisoning from ingesting lead fishing weights when swallowing grit
- Entanglement in abandoned fishing tackle
- Swallowing discarded fishing hooks
- Collision with overhead power cables
Mute swan numbers have increased in recent years due to the banning of lead fishing weights, although some lead may still remain in swans’ habitats. In Britain and some other parts of the world, wild mute swans are protected by law. It is a criminal offence to harm the adult birds and their young, or to interfere with their eggs or nests.
Resources:
- Eastman, J. Birds of Lake, Pond and Marsh: Water and Wetland Birds of Eastern North America. Mechanicsburg, Pa: Stackpole Books, 1999, pp. 9-15.
- RSPB. "Mute Swan." (Accessed 27th October 2009)
- Young People’s Trust for the Environment. "Swan (Mute)." (Accessed 27th October 2009)
Sharon Kirby - Sharon is a freelance health writer and contributes to various print and online publications. Writing credits include Nursing Times, Good ...
