174 



NEW YORK ZOOLOGICAL SOCIETY 



cSSL 



BEWICK'S SWAN 



Whooping Swan the lores and two-thirds of the upper mandible 

 (to below the nostrils along the sides) are brilliant yellow in 

 color. The remainder of the bill is black. 



Although in color and size the Mute and the Whooping Swans 

 are quite similar, there is a very pronounced difference between 

 the texture of the shell of the eggs of the two birds ; that of the 

 Mute being very coarsely granular. Under the microscope the 

 specific differences are very apparent. 



In general the nesting habits of the Whooping Swan resemble 

 those of the Mute, the favorite sites being the half-frozen marshes 

 or tundras of the far north. Four to seven eggs are laid, gen- 

 erally in yiay, and the cygnets are on the wing in August or Sep- 

 tember. 



When on their winter feeding-grounds these swans are very 

 shy and travel in small wedge-shaped flocks or families. Large 

 individuals weigh from fifteen to twenty pounds. Mating for life, 

 as do all the swans, they are very jealous of intrusion and are 

 ever watchful and on the lookout for danger. As an instance of 

 this, these swans for a number of seasons bred in the Zoological 



