Whooper Swan

The Whooper Swan is the Eurasian counterpart to North America's Trumpeter Swan, breeding across subarctic Europe and Asia and migrating to winter on temperate wetlands, lakes, and estuaries further south. It is named for its loud, far-carrying bugling call, a sound it gives frequently and which lends the species an evocative presence on its wintering grounds.

Body and flight feathers are pure white in adults, similar in texture and structure to those of other white swans. The neck is typically held straight and erect rather than gracefully curved, giving the species a more angular silhouette than the Mute Swan, though this is a posture rather than a feather trait. Feather size is large and robust, consistent with this species' substantial body mass.

Sexes look alike. Cygnets are gray-brown, gradually whitening over roughly their first two years. Adults undergo a complete flightless molt after the breeding season.

Breeds on lakes, large rivers, and wetlands across subarctic Europe and Asia, including Iceland, Scandinavia, and Siberia. Winters on temperate wetlands, farmland, lakes, and estuaries further south, including the British Isles, continental Europe, and parts of eastern Asia.

Feeds by grazing on land and dabbling or upending for submerged aquatic plants, and readily takes waste grain on agricultural land in winter. Nests as a large mound of vegetation near water, defended fiercely by the pair. Highly vocal, with a loud, resonant bugling or whooping call given both in flight and while on the water, giving rise to its common name.