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Breeding and Family Tie of Bewick's Swans |
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Breeding: The Bewick's Swans breed on little islands in the mouths of rivers and on the edges of shallow tundra pools. The nests are made of moss and sedges lined with feathers and fluff. The nest can become 75 cm high, 1-1.5 meter in width and be used for many years. Bewick's Swans are very shy on their breeding grounds, using their nest as an outpost. When they see enemies approach they silently leave the nest. The female swans lay from 2 to 6 eggs. The eggs are cream white and measure 103 by 66 mm in size. The female sits on the eggs for about 4 to 5 weeks till the eggs hatch. Males don't brood the eggs themselves but they protect the nest when the female leaves to feed and bathe. Both parents care for the young swans. They are able to fly after only 9 to 10 weeks which is necessary because winter starts early in Siberia. By mid-September the young have to be strong enough to start their first major flight of 4000 kilometer! 
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Family Tie: The Bewick's Swan's young (recognizable by their gray feathers and pink rather than yellow beak parts) stay with their parents the first year. They separate when the parents return to their breeding grounds in the next season. The parents go to their breeding territories while the young swans stay together in large groups in the river mouths and shallow waters. Here they renew their feathers and feed. Many of these young swans rejoin their parents (and new brothers and sisters) when they start the trip to their wintering grounds. Some young swans stay with their parents till they are 3 or 4 years old! Most of them go find their own partners at that age. Bewick's Swans are some of the most partner-faithful birds in the world. They stay together for life! They rarely separate, with the longest known coupling being 19 years! When one of the partners die it usually takes two years before the surviving swan finds a new mate. |
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