Tundra Swan

Cygnus columbianus (Ord, 1815)

115–150 cmLength198 cmWingspan6.4 kgWeight

It is a size smaller than Whooper Swan, with a black bill and a smaller yellow area at its base.

Busiest months: November–January · Most records: United States, Canada, United Kingdom

Looks like Whooper Swan

Least Concern

How to identify

Field marks

White overall, legs and feet black
Bill black with a small yellow area at the base
Yellow on the side of the upper mandible does not form a forward-pointing tip
Shorter neck and rounder head than Whooper Swan

Male, female and young

Female slightly smaller than male, with no other differences in appearance; immature has gray on the head and neck, and a large dirty-pink area at the base of the bill.

Voice

High-pitched goose-like calls, like geese of the genus Branta; the Eurasian subspecies gives a low, soft “bow-wow” in flight.

Similar species

Whooper Swan

Tundra Swan is slightly smaller, with a smaller yellow area at the base of the bill and no pointed leading edge to the yellow.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: November–January · Most records: United States, Canada, United Kingdom

Tundra Swan has been recorded at 1,163 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 51 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

Bombay Hook National Wildlife RefugeUnited States6,551 records
Middle Creek WMA (IBA)United States5,272 records
Ridgefield NWR – River 'S' UnitUnited States4,818 records

More places

Blackwater NWR – Wildlife DriveUnited States4,105 records
Edwin B. Forsythe NWRUnited States3,077 records
Fernhill WetlandsUnited States2,868 records
Pea Island NWR – North Pond Wildlife TrailUnited States2,508 records
Chincoteague NWRUnited States2,498 records
Farmington Bay WMAUnited States2,490 records
Cape Island – Cape May Point SPUnited States2,297 records

Countries and regions with the most records

United States Canada United Kingdom China Japan Greece Poland France

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The tundra swan (Cygnus columbianus) is a species of swan which breeds in the arctic, and overwinters in North America, Europe, and Asia. It is the smallest of the Holarctic swans, at 115–150 cm (45–59 in) in length, 168–211 cm (66–83 in) in wingspan and 3.4–9.6 kg (7.5–21.2 lb) in weight. Typically, the plumage of adults is entirely white, with solid black feet, a black beak that has varying amounts of yellow, and a thin streak of pink along the mouthline, although colour variation is common.

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