THE TRUMPETER SWAN. 
ALLEN BROOKS, 
This, the largest and noblest of American 
game birds, is now rarely found East of the 
Mississippi valley. Westward to the Pacific 
coast it is more common, in some localities 
being much more numerous than its smaller 
congener, the whistling swan. From the 
latter species it can always be distinguished 
by its greater size, and the absence of yel- 
low on the bill of the adults. 
The breeding range of the trumpeter 
swan extends from Northern British Co- 
lumbia to far North of the Arctic circle. 
In August the old birds lose all the flight 
tone. It can be heard at an astonishing 
distance, though when close to the birds it 
does not sound extremely loud. 
I have found the trumpeter a far more 
difficult bird to call than the whistling swan, 
probably due to the call of the trumpeter 
being more difficult to imitate. 
Trumpter swans take an astonishing 
amount of killing. I have known them, 
several times, to fly right away with 30 
caliber soft nose bullets through them. To 
kill them with shot is difficult, I have | 
found it best to use No. 2 or 3, and shoot 

TRUMPETER SWAN. 
feathers by moult, and can then be run 
down and captured. In Southern British 
Columbia the trumpeter arrives about the 
end of October, frequenting certain locali- 
ties year after year, and remaining through- 
out the winter as far North as open water 
and suitable feeding grounds occur. The 
flocks generally are composed of one or 2 
pairs of adults and double that number of 
gray plumaged young. Where numerous, 
the flocks do not mix except when feeding. 
When put up they fly away 1n separate 
strings, following their respective leaders. 
The note of the trumpeter swan is a low 
pitched, hornlike call, with a decided nasal 
OLOR BUCCINATOR. 
194 
at the head. The larger sizes of shot more 
generally used, seldom penetrate sufficiently 
to kill, and their pattern is too scant to try 
at the head. 
When properly roasted, trumpeter swans 
are delicious eating, except probably the 
oldest birds. . 
The head and neck feathers are generally 
much stained with a golden rusty tipping, 
no doubt caused by water impregnated 
with iron. The iris is dark brown; bill 
and feet in the adult are black, in the young 
brownish, or grayish, irregularly marked 
with yellowish flesh color. 

