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Black-necked swan
Cygnus melancoryphus
36.1296, -77.4202
Field Notes
Description:
The body plumage of this bird is white with a black neck, head and greyish bill. It has a red knob near the base of the bill and white stripe behind eye. The sexes are similar, with the female slightly smaller.
They are the smallest swan species, but the largest waterfowl in South America. Males measure 115-140 cm (45-55 in) and weigh 4.5-6.7 kg (10-14.8 lbs); females measure 100-124 cm (39-49 in) and weigh 3.5-4.4 kg (7.7–9.7 lbs).The wingspan ranges from 135-177 cm (53-70 in).
This swan’s short legs are positioned far back on its body, which makes it difficult to walk on land and to take off and land from flight. It does make them the best swimmers among swans, and they are also one of the fastest flying swans.
They reside in large flocks (up to 5,000 birds) during the non-breeding season, but when breeding they split into highly territorial pairs. The female lays four to six eggs in a nest of vegetation mound. Both parents regularly carry the cygnets on their backs. The diet consists mainly of vegetation, insects and fish spawn.
Habitat:
Native to South America, found in freshwater marshes, lagoon and lake shores.
In 2004-2005, thousands of black-necked swans in the Carlos Anwandter Nature Sanctuary in Chile died or migrated away following major contamination by Valdivia Pulp Mill located on the Cruces River which feeds the wetlands. By August 2005 the birds in the Sanctuary had been "wiped out"; only four birds could be observed from a population formerly estimated at 5,000 birds. Autopsies on dead swans attributed the deaths to high levels of iron and other metals polluting the water.
Notes:
These birds are in the world's largest waterfowl park, which helps reintroduce endangered birds back into the wild.
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