JAN., 1909. BIRDS OF ILLINOIS AND WISCONSIN CORY 



355 





Whistling Swan. 



the bill -in front of the eye; the distance from the front angle of the 

 eye to the back edge of the nostril is more than the distance from the back 

 edge of the nostril to the end of the bill; this is one of the characters by 

 which it may be distinguished from the Trumpeter Swan, which also 

 averages larger; bill, and feet, black. 



The immature birds are usually pale, plumbeous gray, with a 

 brownish wash on the head and upper neck; feet, pale yellowish, some- 

 times pale flesh color or grayish. 



Length, 53; wing, 21.50; bill, 4; tarsus, 4.20. 



This species is not uncommon in Illinois and Wisconsin during the 

 migrations, being more often observed on the inland waters than on 

 Lake Michigan. It grows to a large size, a weight of twenty-five 

 pounds being not uncommon, and the flesh of the immature birds 

 is excellent. Its flight is very rapid, much faster than the Wild 

 Goose and it is claimed a speed of one hundred miles an hour is not 

 unusual. W T hen flying the flocks assume a V-shaped form. 



Baird, Brewer and Ridgway state: "The age of this swan may be 

 known by the color of the feathers, the yearling being of a deep 

 leaden tint, with a delicate red bill. In the second year it has a 



