Bewick's Swan

Cygnus columbianus

Eala Bewick

Fewer birds now migrate as far west as Ireland. Numbers here have declined from over 1,000 to less than 300 during the last swan census (2005).

Conservation concern: Red-listed (National, BoCCI), SPEC 3 vulnerable (Europe)

Status: Winter migrant from Siberia, most occurring in Ireland between November & February.

Identification: Smallest of the three white swan species occurring in Ireland, with yellow and black bill (yellow at the base, usually rounded or square, and not reaching the nostril or extending along the sides, as in Whooper Swan). Neck also shorter than Whooper Swan.

Call: Similar to Whooper Swan, but more yapping or honking and less bugling.

Diet: Plant material including tubers, shoots and leaves and they forage in water or flooded pasture.

Breeding: Breeds across low-lying open grassy or swampy tundra of Arctic Siberia adjacent to pools, lakes or rivers.

Wintering: Low-lying wet pasture, lakes, ponds and stubble.

Where to see: Found mostly at Tacumshin Lake and Wexford Slobs (c. 200 birds) in County Wexford.

Monitored by: Irish Wetland Bird Survey (I-WeBS). Swan census every five years, last in 2005.