A photo of a Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus)
Tundra Swan

Tundra Swan

Cygnus columbianus

The tundra swan (Cygnus columbianus) is a small swan of the Holarctic. The two taxa within it are usually regarded as conspecific, but are also sometimes split into two species: Bewick's swan (Cygnus bewickii) of the Palaearctic and the whistling swan (C. columbianus) proper of the Nearctic. Birds from eastern Russia (roughly east of the Taymyr Peninsula) are sometimes separated as the subspecies C. c. jankowskii, but this is not widely accepted as distinct, with most authors including them in C. c. bewickii. Tundra swans are sometimes separated in the subgenus Olor together with the other Arctic swan species. Bewick's swan was named in 1830 by William Yarrell after the engraver Thomas Bewick, who specialised in illustrations of birds and animals. Cygnus is the Latin for "swan", and columbianus comes from the Columbia River, the type locality.
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Tundra Swans on Birda

Photos

Sightings

A map showing the sighting location
🦢
Donna Drury
Monday 20 Mar 2023 - 4:28pm
United States
A map showing the sighting location
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Steve Smith
Saturday 18 Mar 2023 - 8:27am
United Kingdom
A map showing the sighting location
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Jon Slater
Thursday 16 Mar 2023 - 5:53pm
Canada
A map showing the sighting location
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Mike Tranter
Wednesday 15 Mar 2023 - 12:41pm
United Kingdom
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