Wildlife biologists request information on nesting trumpeter swans News from CSKT
FLATHEAD RESERVATION — Wildlife biologists with the Confederated Salish and Kootenai Tribes began a project to restore trumpeter swans as a resident species on the Flathead Indian Reservation in the mid-1990s. Subsequent efforts resulted in the release of 293 captive-bred trumpeter swans since 2002, which has resulted in at least 244 successful nesting attempts that produced 551 fledgling cygnets (swan nestlings) as of 2020. So far, this summer, 16 nesting pairs
COURTESY PHOTO
Trumpeter swans, above, can be identified by their straight, black bill with a red mark where the upper and lower bill meet and are bigger than Tundra swans. Tundra swans have a black bill with a yellow mark below the eye. Mute swans have an orange bill.
with 58 cygnets have been observed in northwestern Montana.
Most of the nesting success has occurred on the reservation, but nest-
ing swans that originated from the restoration project have also nested near Eureka and Kalispell during the past few years. Others that likely originated from the project have nested at Glacier National Park and at the Lost Trail National Wildlife Refuge. A result of these efforts has been the successful restoration of Trumpeter Swans, which were once extirpated as a local resident species. Trumpeter swans are now commonly observed on the reservation and elsewhere in northwestern Montana and are continuing to return to
their former habitats as their population increases. As the released swans reach maturity at the age of three, they begin pairing and producing cygnets. In an effort to better document the expansion of trumpeter swans in northwestern Montana, the Tribal Wildlife Management Program annually surveys wetlands on the reservation to record nesting attempts and production; similar surveys by Montana, Fish, Wildlife and Parks, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service and National Park Service personnel are
ongoing elsewhere in northwestern Montana. The Tribal Wildlife Management Program staff is requesting observations from the public of trumpeter swan nesting and production of cygnets throughout northwestern Montana. “If you have observed trumpeter swans nesting or adult swans with cygnets, please contact Whisper Means, tribal wildlife program manager by phone at 406-6752700, extension 7224 or by email at whisper. means@cskt.org. “Your cooperation and information is greatly appreciated.”
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6 - September 1, 2021
Valley Journal
