Today, the hero of our article will be the largest and most majestic representative of the goose squad - the mute swan. The snow-white handsome man impresses with his grace and article.
Habitat
Mute swan is one of the largest birds in Russia. Its weight reaches 14 kg. He loves standing water bodies with large thickets of semi-aquatic vegetation - cattail, lake reeds, reeds, sedges. The facts of its nesting on the Cheboksary reservoir, Zavolzhsky lakes are recorded. Distributed from southern Scandinavia and Central Europe to the Ussuri Valley, south to Asia Minor, Afghanistan, Iran. In winter, it migrates to the Caspian and Mediterranean regions. Individuals living in the south do not fly away for wintering. This species is registered in seventy countries.
Mute swan: description
The large bird belongs to the duck family. Mute swan (goose squad) is protected in many countries. The body length of the bird averages one hundred and sixty centimeters (including the neck), the wingspan reaches two hundred and forty centimeters. The plumage is snow-white, on the neck and head there is a light ocher plaque. Adults have a bright red beak, a bridle, a velvety cone under the beak. Feet are thick black.
The young mute swan has a light gray plumage with a brownish tint. Its beak is gray-purple. The color of the plumage changes by about three years. These birds have a thicker neck than other white swans. They keep it afloat in the form of the letter "S", effectively raise their wings and hiss eerily (hence the name). Unlike their northern counterparts, they cannot make loud trumpet sounds.
Habitat and nutrition
The mute swan prefers to create a couple, in which it lives constantly. Birds nest on overgrown lakes. Having occupied a small body of water, the pair does not allow other birds to enter its territory. Nests are created in reed beds. They are a large structure of moss, reed and grass. For the construction of poultry, last year's reed is used, to which a large amount of other plant material is added. The bottom of the nest is covered with its down and soft panicles of reed.
Mute swan devotes a lot of time to arranging its home. What does this powerful bird eat? These are mainly the fruits, green parts and roots of plants growing in the reservoir and on its banks. In addition, these are mollusks, small crustaceans, and worms. Sometimes in the summer, birds travel to the steppes to enjoy grains.
Mating season
As already mentioned, a mute swarm creates a pair for life. In the mating season, which begins in early spring, birds that have not yet found their partner are fed. Wanting to win the heart of the chosen one, the male swims around her, raising its wings, twisting its head from side to side. If the female responds to courtship, she takes the same pose. During the nesting period, steam occupies an area of about 100 hectares. Having built a nest, the swans mate. This usually happens in water.
Breeding, offspring
Birds reach puberty by three to four years. The female lays 4-6 eggs of white or light yellow color. The incubation period lasts 35-38 days. Female hatching offspring . The male at this time guards his girlfriend, being always nearby. It should be noted that the mute swan has good paternal qualities. Interesting facts have been recorded by many researchers. When a female needs to leave the nest for a short while in order to get food for herself, the male takes her place. No predators are afraid of him. With one stroke of his powerful wing, he is able to kill a fox, break a man’s arm .
Emerging chicks weigh approximately 200 grams. They are covered with thick gray fluff, barely dry, ready to leave the nest. However, at first they everywhere accompanied their mother, comfortably sitting on her back. From the first hours of life, the chicks feed on their own, only at night they return to the nest under the maternal wing to warm themselves. Both parents care for the offspring.
At four months (sometimes a little earlier), the chicks begin to take off. From this moment they unite in large youth flocks. In natural conditions, the mute swan lives 25-28 years.
During the breeding season, the mute swan is very aggressive. He violently defends his nest, ruthlessly expels other birds and their broods from "his" reservoir.
Wintering
Going for the winter, these birds gather in thousands of flocks, most often consisting of family groups. This provides them with great security.
When it is not possible to get food due to rain or wind, the swans lie on the ground, hide their legs and beak in a warm plumage, and in this position they wait for hours for the weather to improve.
Pack life
Mute swans are very accommodating. They are peaceful towards their brothers and other birds. Fights are extremely rare, only in cases where you need to protect your territory. Opponents hit each other strongly with beaks and wings.
Mute Swan: Red Book
Despite the fact that at present the state of the species does not cause concern, a beautiful bird needs protection. It must be protected from poachers, to observe periods of silence on water in May-June. At this time, the mute swan acquires offspring. The Red Book of Russia, Tatarstan, Belarus, the Saratov Region has this beauty in its lists.
Captivity
Since time immemorial, man has kept these snow-white powerful birds in captivity. When properly maintained, the mute swan does not suffer from this at all and does not strive for freedom. It easily adapts to new conditions, quickly creates a pair even with minimal selection, and successfully reproduces.
Before you buy swans for maintenance, you must fulfill a number of prerequisites:
- organize a reservoir with clean water;
- provide winter keeping of birds.
The pond can be of any size, but it is desirable that it be as large as possible. This makes bird care easier. If there is one, then part of the problem is solved. In winter, a compressor and pipes for pumping air and water can be installed in it. Thus, a constant flow is created, the pond does not freeze even in severe frosts.
Some act differently - they transfer birds from a large reservoir to a winter room. Provided that there will be a swimming pool in which you can regularly change the water, and a small clearing for walking with dry litter, the birds will feel comfortable.
However, the most humane way of winter keeping is to transfer swans to overexposure to a nursery, which has all the conditions for winter keeping of birds with a guarantee of their conservation.
Number
According to the latest data, in the world there are 500 thousand individuals of this species, of which 350 thousand live in Russia. Most live in the Volga delta. About 30 thousand mute swan live in the UK, in other countries such birds are much fewer. Hunting these birds was banned in 1960, after which their numbers increased significantly.
Interesting Facts
Mute swans are pretty smart birds with a good memory. They easily remember the one who offended them, and even after a few months they can take revenge on him. People are aggressive only during the breeding season, protecting the clutch or chicks. Mute swords have excellent vision and hearing. Birds communicate among themselves in an interesting language, consisting of a large number of gestures and sounds. The body of an adult swan is covered by more than 23 thousand feathers. Individuals living in captivity often reach the age of thirty.