Birds of a Feather

Tribal Wildlife Management Program sees a successful reintroduction of Trumpeter Swans

The protected waters of the Flathead Reservation is a prime destination for Trumpeter Swans during the wintertime. 

They fly from Canada, seeking warmer climate and make their way to the wetlands of the reservation and Lake County, where they usually settle on the lower Flathead River. This wasn’t always the case, as the Trumpeter swans were rare and almost extinct after trapping and excessive hunting diminished the population by the turn of the 20th century.

The Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes have been engaged in a program to breed the swans while also protecting the present population. Wildlife biologists have called for citizens to report any sightings of the rare bird on the reservation and areas that surround Lake County.

The Trumpeter Swan, with a wingspan that can be 10 feet long, is the largest and heaviest bird native to North America.

Out of the three types of swans – Trumpeter, Tundra, and Mute – two are indigenous to North America: the Trumpeter and Tundra swans. The Mute swan is a Eurasian bird found mostly in the north of the continent, but it is not uncommon to find them in Northern parts of Africa. They have bright orange bills.

The Trumpeter and Tundra swans are similar in appearance; they both have white feathers and black beaks, but there are little differences that an observer can use to distinguish them apart from one another. Tundra swans swim with their necks curved, while Trumpeter swans swim with their long necks straight and tall. Trumpeter swans are also bigger than Tundra swans. Both have all-black bills.

Trumpeter swans were trapped in pre-settlement times and used for their feathers and meat. Hudson’s Bay in Canada trapped them back in the day and shipped various products to England, such as pillows and writing quills. Their skin was a popular shippable good as well. Their feathers were the most sought-after product.

During these times of trapping, the population of Trumpeter swans was drastically reduced in North America and almost extinct by 1933.

From then until now, wildlife agencies and the Trumpeter Swan Society worked to restore a healthy population of the birds. According to the 2010 Trumpeter Swan survey, it is estimated that the population has exceeded 46,000 birds.

Here on the Flathead Reservation, efforts have been underway for over 10 years to locally restore swans to the area. 

In 1996, the CSKT Tribal Wildlife Management Program began efforts in earnest to reintroduce the Trumpeter Swan back into the Mission Valley. By using a variety of methods such as relocation, reintroduction, and captive breeding, the Tribal Wildlife Management Program has released 249 Trumpeter swans on the Flathead Indian Reservation. The program has been a success in terms of population: according to their internal numbers, 133 Trumpeter Swans wintered on the reservation by 2014.

Dale Becker, the Tribal Wildlife Program Manager, said since the CSKT put out a request for public observations of Trumpeter swans last month, he’s fielded calls from people as far away as Kalispell with reports of nesting. Locally, he’s received reports of sightings in Pablo and the Ronan areas.

“The program has been a big success,” he said. “So much so that we’re beginning to wind down the reintroduction.”

Becker said now efforts will be spent to monitor and maintain the population of Trumpeter Swans on the Reservation.

An initial reason for bird fatalities here is lead shot in hunting, which the tribes prohibit. The birds will eat the lead through different ways and Becker says it’s almost always fatal.

“These birds have an intense digestive system,” he said. Although it was a problem in the past, illegal hunting isn’t so much a problem these days. Since 1996, there were two reported incidents of illegal shooting. However, the birds can still eat lead shot which has survived in the lands the Trumpeter Swans nest. The bigger problem that the program deals with is power line fatalities.

Trumpeter Swans can occasionally fly into power lines causing death. Becker attributes these incidents to a couple of possibilities. The most likely reason for death is that the birds do not see the power lines and thus will fly into them inadvertently.

“The birds fly at dusk,” he said. “Making the power lines hard to see.”

The CSKT Wildlife Management Program works with Mission Valley Power to come up with solutions for preventing death and making power lines more visible to the birds with Firefly diverters, pieces of metal with plastic reflectors and light-holding material which safely bind lines and will glow at dusk, hopefully catching the eye of the birds as they fly into the area.

Becker estimates that 500 Firefly diverters have been placed on the power lines with the cooperation of Mission Valley Power.

Like any effort in wildlife conservation and restoration, population control is key.

“It’s all a numbers game,” he said. “You need to produce more than you lose.”

Becker said the program’s goal was to have 10 pairs of Trumpeter Swans nesting over three years. They’ve met and exceeded that goal by hitting that number four years in a row up to this year.

A mating pair can produce up to eight baby swans, known as cygnets, but the average is four – accounting for abandonment, early death, and environmental factors. Usually the cygnets will hatch around Memorial Day, Becker said, although weather can affect the rhythm of the birds’ mating patterns.

This year Becker has accounted for 54 cygnets, 42 of which survived, a number that is average compared to past years.

Sometimes Trumpeter swans are territorial; a reporting from a resident earlier this year to Becker told of a story about two pairs of swans nesting in close proximity to one another. One pair drove another pair out of the area, and took control of the other pair’s cygnets, which are grey in color for a year until their feathers turn white. Trumpeter swans usually take three years to become mature and can live over 20 years.

“So right now there’s a pair in Pablo that has 12 half-grown cygnets,” he said.

Trumpeter Swans are popular with residents in the Reservation and Lake County, Becker said. “Swans have a big following.”

Since the reintroduction of the swans to the valley, there have been no reported conflicts with humans. Whereas residents shoot and kill coyotes, humans are protective of the birds, Becker said.

As captive-breeding is winding down in the Tribal Wildlife Management Program, Becker and his team will be closely monitoring the population in the future by marking the birds with red plastic collars, along with the usual U.S. Fish and Wildlife clips. Each clip has a corresponding number to the bird, that way Becker can track movement and location on a year-by-year basis, collecting data along the way. The data collected extends beyond the Flathead Indian Reservation and into the surrounding area of Northwest Montana.

If you have observed Trumpeter Swans on your land, call and report observations to Dale Becker at the CSKT Tribal Wildlife Management Program at (406) 675-2700 ext. 7278 or by email at daleb@cskt.org