[Length 60 in. Wingspan 75 in.]

This Mute Swan and her cygnets were photographed at Brigantine NWR in New Jersey. Photo taken with a 300mm f4.5 Nikkor ED lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: May 1987)

[Length 60 in. Wingspan 75 in.]

This Mute Swan in flight was photographed at Cape May, New Jersey. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: September 1990)

[Length 60 in. Wingspan 80 in.]

Trumpeter Swans get their name from their loud, sonorous "KO-HOH" call. Today, Trumpeter Swans breed locally in isolated groups in the northwestern US, western Canada, and southern Alaska, but they originally ranged widely across the eastern US as well. Habitat destruction and hunting drastically reduced their numbers almost to the point of extinction by the 1930s. Conservation efforts have allowed the western populations to grow, and they have been successfully reintroduced in suitable habitat in the northcentral US. When this one showed up at a small pond in central New Jersey, it caused quite a stir until the local birders figured out that it was introduced to control the large numbers of local Canada Geese (Swans are very territorial and will chase geese away). This "captive" Trumpeter Swan was photographed at Squibb Pond in Princeton, New Jersey. Photo taken with a 300mm f4.5 Nikkor ED lens on Kodachrome 200 film. (Date: February 1984)

[Length 60 in. Wingspan 80 in.]

This captive Trumpeter Swan was photographed at Lakeside Park, Andrews, TX. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens (EFL=450mm) on a Nikon D200 camera. (Date: July 28, 2009)

[Length 60 in. Wingspan 80 in.]

This captive Trumpeter Swan was photographed at Lakeside Park, Andrews, TX. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens (EFL=450mm) on a Nikon D200 camera. (Date: July 28, 2009)

[Length 60 in. Wingspan 80 in.]

This captive Trumpeter Swan was photographed at Lakeside Park, Andrews, TX. Photo taken with a AF-S VR Zoom-Nikkor 70-300mm f/4.5-5.6G IF-ED lens (EFL=112mm) on a Nikon D200 camera. (Date: July 28, 2009)

[Length 52 in. Wingspan 66 in.]

The Whistling Swan of North America and the Bewick's Swan of Europe and Asia were once considered separate species. Both are now lumped together and collectively called the Tundra Swan. This one was photographed in February on the ice of a partially frozen pond in Cape May, New Jersey. Photo taken with a Celestron 1250mm f10 lens on Ektachrome 400 film pushed to 800. (Date: November 1986)

[Length 52 in. Wingspan 66 in.]

These Tundra Swans in flight were photographed at the famous Pedricktown, New Jersey causeway. Photo taken with a Nikkor 300mm ED f4.5 lens on Kodachrome 64 film. (Date: March 1984)