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Today on Animal Fact Files we’re talking about mute swans. The name “mute swan” is a bit of a misnomer because these swans aren’t actually mute. While they may generally be quieter than other swan species, the trait that lead to their namesake, mute swans make plenty of calls - especially when they’re defending their nests. Mute swans are some of the largest swan species, and are often sighted as the largest flying birds in an area. On average, mute swans measure four and a half feet (1.37 meters) in length, twenty two pounds (10 kilograms) in weight, and have more than seven foot (2.1 meters) wing spans. With these giant wings, mute swans can really pack a punch! Mute swans are known to attack anything that gets too close to their nests, even people; they’re so protective of their young, mute swans have literally knocked kayakers out of their boats in an attempt to keep the humans away. These swans are in fact quite dangerous to children who venture too close, and they are able to kill smaller predators with heavy wing beats. Hey, we said it in our swan episode and we’ll say it again here, swans are not as romantic as they seem!

Typically male mute swans doing the protecting. There’s a myth that these swans mate for life. While it’s not entirely inaccurate to call mute swans monogamous, it’s more likely that they mate for a season or two before finding a new mate. They may also switch mates in a breeding season if a partner doesn’t or can’t perform. No matter their sexual preferences, however, mute swans often build their nests in previous nest sites. The nests are made up of aquatic vegatation and lined with feathers. Both parents work to make it fit for their eggs. A female mute swan lays approximately six eggs and incubates them for just over a month. The chicks only stay a day in the nest, heading to the water within their first 48 hours of life. This is pretty typical of waterfowl species. Most birds want to get their babies out of the nest as soon as possible because baby birds confined to a bird nest make an easy meal for an opportunistic predator and bird nests are often breeding grounds for bacteria. Mute swan cygnets are able to fly about two months after hatching, but they won’t begin breeding until they’re three years old.

Mute swans are natively found in Europe, Asia, and Africa. They spend their breeding months in the northern parts of their range and migrate south for the winter. They’ve also been introduced to places such as Japan and North America. In North America specifically they have increased in number to the point that they are harming native animal and plant species. Mute swan may eat up to eight pounds (3.6 kilograms) of food in a single day - enough that they eat faster than the plants have time to regrow in order to provide food for other species. This is specifically bad for similarly-sized, native animals such as Canada geese and trumpeter swans because of competition for food. Smaller water fowl can’t reach as deep as these large bird species, but similarly-sized species collect food from the same areas as mute swans; if that food is depleted, then someone may go hungry. Of course, for mute swans in their native ranges, this isn’t as much an issue! Mute swans eat plants as well as fish, arthropods, and the occasional amphibian. They live in aquatic habitats that include fresh, brackish, and saltwater. Mute swans may be found in human-made parks, bays, swamps, estuaries, lakes, rivers, ponds, and more.

Mute swans are generally white in color and can be identified from other similar looking species by the bulge on their beaks. Adults are usually large enough to defend themselves and their babies from predators, however, young, weak, and old mute swans may be taken by minks, raccoons, and other similarly sized predators. In the wild they may live to be two decades old.

For more facts on mute swans, check out the links in the description. Thank you to Alicia Lopez for today’s request! Give a thumbs up if you learned something new today, and thank you for watching Animal Fact Files.