Home/Species/ Tundra Swan

Cygnus columbianus

(Ord, 1815)

Tundra Swan

G5Secure Found in 35 roadless areas NatureServe Explorer →

G5SecureGlobal Rank

Least concernIUCN

Identity

Unique IDELEMENT_GLOBAL.2.105749

Element CodeABNJB02010

Record TypeSPECIES

ClassificationSpecies

Classification StatusStandard

Name CategoryVertebrate Animal

IUCNLeast concern

Endemicoccurs (regularly, as a native taxon) in multiple nations

KingdomAnimalia

PhylumCraniata

ClassAves

OrderAnseriformes

FamilyAnatidae

GenusCygnus

Synonyms

Olor columbianus

Other Common Names

Cisne de Tundra (ES) Cygne siffleur (FR)

Concept Reference

American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in The Auk]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.

Taxonomic Comments

C. columbianus and C. bewickii are sometimes considered distinct species (AOU 1983, 1998). See Meng et al. (1990) for information on variability of DNA fingerprints in C. cygnus, C. olor, and C. columbianus.

Conservation Status

Rank MethodExpertise without calculation

Review Date2016-04-07

Change Date1996-11-20

Range Extent>2,500,000 square km (greater than 1,000,000 square miles)

Range Extent Comments

BREEDS: Alaska and Canadian low Arctic; northern Russia east along Arctic coast to northern Siberia. WINTERS: mainly on Pacific and Atlantic coasts of North America from southern British Columbia to California and from New Jersey to South Carolina; Eurasia south to British Isles, northern Europe, southeastern Asia. Accidental in Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and elsewhere (AOU 1998). In the U.S., primary wintering areas include the Atlantic coast from northern South Carolina to southern New Jersey, the vicinity of the Great Salt Lake, and central and northern California (Root 1988).

Ecology & Habitat

Habitat

Lakes, sloughs, rivers, sometimes fields, in migration. Open tundra marshy lakes and ponds and sluggish streams in summer. Shallow lakes, ponds, and estuaries in winter. Breeds on tundra near open water. Usually nests on islets or along shoreline of ponds, but may nest as far as 1/2 mile from water. The nest is a mound (1-2 ft x 2-3 ft) of mosses, grasses, and sedges (Terres 1980). Same site may be used in successive years.

Ecology

May gather in large flocks to feed. Family groups of 6-7 individuals may form flocks and move together.

Reproduction

Breeding begins late May to June. Female incubates 5, sometimes 3-7 eggs for 30-32 days. Peak hatching usually is in late June-early July in Beaufort Sea region. Single-brooded. Young can fly at about 9-10 weeks, remain with the adults until the following spring (Harrison 1978). Probably first breeds at 3 years (may establish territory at 2 years). Substantial portion of birds in breeding areas may be nonbreeders. Highest nest density in Alaska: 1.5 nests per sq km in Yukon-Kuskokwim River delta (see Johnson and Herter 1989).

Terrestrial Habitats

Tundra

Palustrine Habitats

HERBACEOUS WETLANDFORESTED WETLANDBog/fenRiparian

Other Nations (2)

CanadaN5B,N4N

Province	Rank	Native
Yukon Territory	S3B	Yes
British Columbia	S3N	Yes
Quebec	S4B	Yes
Saskatchewan	S5M	Yes
Alberta	S5M	Yes
Ontario	S2B,S4N,S3M	Yes
Nunavut	S5B	Yes
Manitoba	S4B	Yes
Northwest Territories	S5	Yes

United StatesN5B,N5N

Province	Rank	Native
Texas	S1N	Yes
South Carolina	S4N	Yes
Maryland	S4N	Yes
Iowa	SNA	Yes
Nebraska	SNRN	Yes
Wisconsin	SNA	Yes
Kansas	SNA	Yes
West Virginia	S2N	Yes
Illinois	SNA	Yes
Wyoming	S2N	Yes
District of Columbia	S2N	Yes
Pennsylvania	S4N,S3M	Yes
New Mexico	S4N	Yes
Michigan	SNRN	Yes
North Dakota	SNA	Yes
Utah	S3N	Yes
Delaware	S3N	Yes
Kentucky	SNA	Yes
North Carolina	S5N	Yes
Alaska	S4B	Yes
Tennessee	S3N	Yes
Arkansas	SNA	Yes
Alabama	SNRN	Yes
Montana	SNA	Yes
Colorado	SNA	Yes
Georgia	S3	Yes
Missouri	SNA	Yes
New Jersey	S4N	Yes
Washington	S4N	Yes
California	SNRN	Yes
Minnesota	SNRM	Yes
South Dakota	SNA	Yes
Navajo Nation	S1N	Yes
Virginia	SNRN	Yes
Indiana	SNA	Yes
New York	SNRN	Yes
Idaho	S4M,S4N	Yes
Arizona	S1N	Yes
Oregon	S4N	Yes
Nevada	S4N	Yes
Ohio	SNRN	Yes

Threat Assessments

Threat	Scope	Severity	Timing
11 - Climate change & severe weather	Pervasive (71-100%)	Unknown	Low (long-term)
11.1 - Habitat shifting & alteration	Pervasive (71-100%)	Unknown	Low (long-term)

Roadless Areas (35)

Alaska (8)

Area	Forest	Acres
Johnson Pass	Chugach National Forest	152,508
Kenai Lake	Chugach National Forest	213,172
Kenai Mountains	Chugach National Forest	306,600
Nellie Juan	Chugach National Forest	713,697
North Revilla	Tongass National Forest	215,430
Resurrection	Chugach National Forest	224,615
Revilla	Tongass National Forest	29,298
Roaded Donut	Chugach National Forest	968

California (3)

Area	Forest	Acres
Benton Range	Inyo National Forest	9,637
Glass Mountain	Inyo National Forest	52,867
Salt Creek	Angeles National Forest	11,022

Idaho (3)

Area	Forest	Acres
Borah Peak	Salmon-Challis National Forest	130,463
Hoodoo	Nez Perce-Clearwater National Forest	153,868
Palisades	Caribou-Targhee National Forest	122,002

Montana (7)

Area	Forest	Acres
Allan Mountain (01946)	Bitterroot National Forest	104,184
Bear - Marshall - Scapegoat - Swan	Lewis and Clark National Forest	344,022
Bmss Ra 1485	Flathead National Forest	334,275
Cube Iron - Silcox	Lolo National Forest	36,998
Hyalite - Porcupine - Buffalo Horn Wilderness Study Area	Gallatin National Forest	143,991
Marston Face # 172	Kootenai National Forest	9,098
Selway - Bitterroot (01067)	Bitterroot National Forest	114,953

Nevada (1)

Area	Forest	Acres
Pearl Peak	Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest	71,405

Oregon (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Hellhole	Umatilla National Forest	65,679
Hurricane Creek	Wallowa-Whitman National Forest	1,606

Utah (5)

Area	Forest	Acres
Casto Bluff	Dixie National Forest	87,466
Fishlake Mountain	Fishlake National Forest	25,217
Little Creek	Fishlake National Forest	11,479
Mt. Aire	Wasatch-Cache National Forest	9,681
Wellsville	Wasatch-Cache National Forest	1,717

Washington (2)

Area	Forest	Acres
Grassy Top	Colville National Forest	10,302
Grassy Top	Idaho Panhandle National Forests	13,485

Wyoming (4)

Area	Forest	Acres
Palisades	Targhee National Forest	1,121
South Beartooth Highway	Shoshone National Forest	105,570
Sulphur Creek	Shoshone National Forest	30,221
Windy Mountain	Shoshone National Forest	31,283

References (24)

American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1983. Check-list of North American Birds, 6th edition. Allen Press, Inc., Lawrence, Kansas. 877 pp.
American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1998. Check-list of North American birds. Seventh edition. American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. [as modified by subsequent supplements and corrections published in <i>The Auk</i>]. Also available online: http://www.aou.org/.
BirdLife International. 2004b. Threatened birds of the world 2004. CD ROM. BirdLife International, Cambridge, UK.
Castelli, P. M., and J. E. Applegate. 1989. Economic loss caused by tundra swans feeding in cranberry bogs. Trans. Northeast Sect. Wildl. Soc. 46:17-23.
Glazener, W. C. 1946. Food habits of wild geese on the Gulf Coast of Texas. Journal of Wildlife Management 10:322-329.
Godfrey, W.E. 1966. The birds of Canada. National Museums of Canada. Ottawa. 428 pp.
Hammond, M. C., and G. E. Mann. 1956. Waterfowl nesting islands. Journal of Wildlife Management 20:345-352.
Harrison, C. 1978. A Field Guide to the Nests, Eggs and Nestlings of North American Birds. Collins, Cleveland, Ohio.
Howell, S. N. G., and S. Webb. 1995. A guide to the birds of Mexico and northern Central America. Oxford University Press, Oxford, UK.
Hughes, R. J., A. Reed, and G. Gauthier. 1994. Space and habitat use by Greater Snoow Goose broods on Bylot Island, Northwest Territories. Journal of Wildlife Management 58:536-545.
Johnson, S. R. and D. R. Herter. 1989. The Birds of the Beaufort Sea. BP Exploration (Alaska) Inc., Anchorage, Alaska. 372 pp.
Kortright, F.H. 1967. The ducks, geese, and swans of North America. The Stackpole Company, Harrisburg, PA, and Wildlife Management Institute, Washington, D.C. 476 pp.
Lumsden, H. G. 1984. The pre-settlement breeding distribution of trumpeter, CYGNUS BUCCINATOR, and tundra swans, C. COLUMBIANUS, in eastern Canada. Can. Field-Nat. 98:415-424.
Meng, A., R. E. Carter, and D. T. Parkin. 1990. The variability of DNA fingerprints in three species of swan. Heredity 64:73-80.
Palmer, R. S., editor. 1976. Handbook of North American birds. Vol. 2. Waterfowl (first part). Whistling ducks, swans, geese, sheld-ducks, dabbling ducks. Yale Univ. Press, New Haven. 521 pp.
Parker III, T. A., D. F. Stotz, and J. W. Fitzpatrick. 1996. Ecological and distributional databases for neotropical birds. The University of Chicago Press, Chicago.
Poole, A. F. and F. B. Gill. 1992. The birds of North America. The American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C. and The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, PA.
Pratt, H. D., P. L. Bruner, and D. G. Berrett. 1987. A Field Guide to the Birds of Hawaii and the Tropical Pacific. Princeton University Press, Princeton, New Jersey. 409 pp. + 45 plates.
Raffaele, H., J. Wiley, O. Garrido, A. Keith, and J. Raffaele. 1998. A guide to the birds of the West Indies. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. 511 pp.
Root, T. 1988. Atlas of wintering North American birds: An analysis of Christmas Bird Count data. University of Chicago Press. 336 pp.
Sibley, D. A. 2000a. The Sibley guide to birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
Terres, J. K. 1980. The Audubon Society encyclopedia of North American birds. Alfred A. Knopf, New York.
U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). 1988. SEIS 88. Final supplemental environmental impact statement: issuance of annual regulations permitting the sport hunting of migratory birds. x + 340 pp.
Williams, C. S., and C. A. Sooter. 1941. Canada Goose habitats in Utah and Oregon. Transactions of the North American Wildlife Conference 5:383-387.

Cygnus columbianus

Habitat

Ecology

Reproduction

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