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Whooper swans. Matsalu bay

 

 

The arrived migrant birds make themselves loudly heard. Last Sunday and Saturday there was a real throng of swans (3000+ individuals) in Väike väin, Tarvo Valker reports, but migrants and pausing birds can also be seen at lakes and polders. The number of passing migrants is estimated at more than 15 000 birds. Good observation spots in addition to the already mentioned are Haapsalu bay, Matsalu bay, the Häädemeeste shore area …

 

The Finnish national bird is a breeding bird in Estonia in numbers increasing by each year, and this year up to a hundred whooper swan pairs may nest here, but more about that when spring advances.

 

The more frequently seen mute swan holds its neck in a graceful curve when swimming, the red beak with a bump (the black bump of males is a little larger) points downwards and wings are often lifted for use as sails. The black beak tip and yellow stem fit smoothly in a wedge shape in line with the forehead of the bird. The neck is held straight and the wings are nicely on the back on swimming.

When they are grasping food from the bottom of water bodies we note the short rounded tail of the whooper swan, the tip of which seems to be cut off. The large white aquatic birds have similar measures – length about one and a half metre, wing span a little less than two and a half metres, and the weight is rather variable depending on age, staying in the  seven to twelve kilos range.

 

From the migrant flocks of whooper swans a sound like ”dogs yapping” is heard and their trumpet-voiced calls are powerful. While whooper swans fly nearly noiselessly, the characteristic swishing of the wings of mute swans probably most have heard who have been roaming on the coast and seen mute swans flying.

 

Whooper swan

 

 

We also see Bewick’s swans, they usually arrive a little later than whooper swans. The number of passing migrants is particularly large in spring, about 60 000. An inexperienced birdwatcher doesn’t distinguish between whooper swans and Bewick’s swans, they are really quite similar (see Arne’s lower photo). They often feed together on migration stopovers. In mainland waters good observation points are the Peipsi lake, the Kallaste-Mustvee shore, Lahepera lake and also the Audru polder and Pärnu bay.

 

Bewick's and whooper swans. Palupõhja, Alam-Pedja