{"id":121635,"date":"2024-02-21T05:33:34","date_gmt":"2024-02-21T12:33:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=121635"},"modified":"2026-03-08T19:18:51","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T00:18:51","slug":"tundra-swan-trumpeter-swan-comparison","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/02\/21\/tundra-swan-trumpeter-swan-comparison\/","title":{"rendered":"Tundra Swan – Trumpeter Swan Comparison"},"content":{"rendered":"

I saw a post on Facebook the other day where the person stated that the swans in their image, taken at Bear River MBR, were a “mated pair of Trumpeter Swans” lifting off from the water.<\/p>\n

\"TundraTundra Swan standing on ice<\/span><\/p>\n

Since I am very much aware that the most common swans at Bear River MBR and in northern Utah are, in fact, Tundra Swans, I was curious. I clicked on the image to enlarge it, and sure enough, the swans in the photo were Tundra Swans, not Trumpeters. That misidentified swan image was shared with more than a dozen groups on Facebook.<\/p>\n

\"TrumpeterTrumpeter Swan standing on ice<\/span><\/p>\n

We do get Trumpeter Swans at the refuge, but they are few compared to Tundra Swans, and I’ve never found a presumed “mated” pair. I often go years without finding Trumpeters in northern Utah.<\/p>\n

\"TundraTundra Swan and Trumpeter Swan composite image<\/span><\/p>\n

I created this composite image of a Tundra Swan and a Trumpeter Swan from swans that were in the same location on the same date at the refuge on February 19, 2022. I would have loved to have had the Trumpeter Swan side by side with a Tundra Swan naturally, but that didn’t happen. The Trumpeter Swan was associating with the Tundras, but it stood apart from them.<\/p>\n

Trumpeter Swans are noticeably larger than Tundras. That is the main reason the Trumpeter caught my eye, because I know<\/em> birds.<\/p>\n

Trumpeters also have a more rounded back, but that isn’t always noticeable when there isn’t a Tundra Swan nearby to compare with. Trumpeters have a longer neck, but that wouldn’t be a feature I would use for identification if I only have a single bird in front of me.<\/p>\n

I knew immediately that I had found a Trumpeter Swan at the refuge two years ago because I noticed its larger size compared to the Tundras. However, there are more key identification features that can be used to identify these two swan species.<\/p>\n

\"TundraTundra Swan standing on ice with inset<\/span><\/p>\n

This Tundra Swan photo was taken the same morning that I found the Trumpeter Swan on the auto tour loop of the refuge. The inset shows the swan’s face flipped horizontally.<\/p>\n

Of note, this inset clearly shows a yellow spot immediately in front of the eye that contrasts with the black bill.<\/p>\n

Note:<\/strong> Not all Tundra Swans show a yellow spot on their bill. The size of the yellow spot is highly variable. It can be tiny or large. In immature Tundra Swans, the yellow spot can be white and nearly invisible from a distance. Some Tundra Swans have no spot at all on their bills.<\/p>\n

Then there are the swans with really large yellow spots on their bills. Those can be the rare Bewick’s Tundra Swans from Eurasia<\/a><\/span>, or the even more rare, Whooper or Common Swan. But I’m not writing about them today.<\/p>\n

I found one of those spotless Tundra Swans I mentioned a few years ago and shared it with my friend, Mark Stackhouse<\/span><\/a>, because I wanted to be sure of my identification. Mark is one of my go-to people when I find myself struggling with an ID. I sure appreciate Mark’s assistance on those rare occasions when I need help.<\/p>\n

The inset above also shows a curve where the black bill meets the white feathers of the Tundra Swan’s face. Also, the top part of the bill of Tundra Swans exhibit a slightly curved appearance.<\/p>\n

\"TrumpeterTrumpeter Swan standing on ice with inset<\/span><\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n

I created an inset on the Trumpeter Swan I found that morning too for this comparison.<\/p>\n

Trumpeter Swans don’t have the yellow spot on their bill in front of their eyes. They have a longer bill, with a straighter line between the crown and the tip of the bill. Additionally, the line between the back of their black bills and the white feathers of their face is straighter than it is on Tundra Swans.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\"TundraTundra Swan and Trumpeter Swan portrait composite image<\/span><\/p>\n

I created this composite image of just the faces of the Tundra and Trumpeter Swans for clarity. Both of these swan species are beautiful and I love having them in my viewfinder at the refuge. I wish that I could find Trumpeters more often than I do. I’m always carefully looking for them.<\/p>\n

I hope this comparison helps anyone who might be struggling with Trumpeter Swan and Tundra Swan identification in the field or when they are looking at their own photos.<\/p>\n

You might wonder if I contacted the person who posted the photo of the misidentified swans on Facebook to let them know about their mistaken ID.<\/p>\n

I didn’t.<\/strong><\/p>\n

I don’t know them personally, and their photo wasn’t in a bird identification group. They weren’t requesting help with their identification.<\/p>\n

Over the years, I have tried to help with bird identification and my brain has been picked over and over again. I don’t mind helping most people at all. In fact, I readily share my knowledge about birds.<\/p>\n

I’ve offered ID assistance on Facebook and in bird identification groups with mixed reactions. Most of my friends are grateful when I identify misidentified birds, whether they have misidentified a bird in a post or just need help with an identification.<\/p>\n

Other people? Not so much, even in bird identification groups.<\/p>\n

Once a local person asked for help in one of those bird ID groups on Facebook identifying what they called a “rare” Great Egret. When I explained that Great Egrets weren’t rare in northern Utah, the guy got pretty nasty with me.<\/p>\n

Had he not been intent on nastily attacking me, I would have told him that the white wading bird at Farmington Bay WMA that had everyone there excited was actually a rare White Ibis. As it was, the man was so awful, even after group experts supported what I had said, that the moderators turned off commenting on that post.<\/p>\n

So, on Facebook, I am kind of hesitant to offer identification assistance if it is not explicitly asked for. I don’t need the drama that can sometimes go with it.<\/p>\n

With that all said, I’d also like to say that I don’t and won’t call myself or consider myself an “expert<\/em>.” I just happen to know a lot about birds, their behaviors, and identification.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good. But yeah, sometimes I avoid giving bird identifications or my opinion on their behavior. I don’t enjoy being snapped at or treated badly.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/a> <\/span>to see more of my Trumpeter Swan photos plus facts and information about this species. Click here<\/a><\/span> to see more of my Tundra Swan photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I hope this comparison helps anyone who might be struggling with Trumpeter Swan and Tundra Swan identification in the field or when they are looking at their own photos.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":121639,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[124,163,27,1148,227,158,26],"tags":[4004,4804,4982,2672,4431,4064,10265,4094,4059,6428,953,4628,3122,2671,2117,2063,4095,373],"class_list":["post-121635","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge","category-bird-identification","category-avian","category-box-elder-county-utah","category-trumpeter-swans","category-tundra-swans","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-comparing","tag-comparison","tag-cygnus-buccinator","tag-cygnus-columbianus","tag-ice","tag-inset","tag-marsh","tag-phragmites","tag-phrags","tag-standing","tag-swan","tag-swans","tag-trumpeter-swan","tag-tundra-swan","tag-waterfowl","tag-wetlands","tag-winter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/trumpeter-and-tundra-swan-comparison-mia-mcpherson-4374.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-vDR","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":100136,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/02\/21\/trumpeter-swan-photos-from-bear-river-mbr\/","url_meta":{"origin":121635,"position":0},"title":"Trumpeter Swan Photos From Bear River MBR","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"February 21, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"When I was at Bear River MBR two days ago I was excited to be able to take a nice series of Trumpeter Swan photos on the west side of the auto tour loop.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Adult Trumpeter Swan lifting off from the marsh at Bear River MBR, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/trumpeter-swan-brmbr-mia-mcpherson-4392.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/trumpeter-swan-brmbr-mia-mcpherson-4392.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/trumpeter-swan-brmbr-mia-mcpherson-4392.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/02\/trumpeter-swan-brmbr-mia-mcpherson-4392.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":123293,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2024\/03\/09\/today-is-utahs-swan-day-for-2024\/","url_meta":{"origin":121635,"position":1},"title":"Today Is Utah’s Swan Day For 2024","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 9, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Today is March 9th, and it is Utah's Swan Day 2024! The Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge auto tour loop is a terrific place to see these lovely white swans.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Winter Tundra Swan portrait, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swan-solitary-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4967.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swan-solitary-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4967.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swan-solitary-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4967.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swan-solitary-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4967.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":108733,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/12\/14\/birds-on-ice-in-northern-utah\/","url_meta":{"origin":121635,"position":2},"title":"Birds On Ice In Northern Utah","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"December 14, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"This morning I'm sharing photos of five bird species that I find on ice during the coldest months of the year in marsh and urban locations.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Tundra Swan and shadow on ice, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/tundra-swan-adult-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4347.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/tundra-swan-adult-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4347.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/tundra-swan-adult-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4347.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/12\/tundra-swan-adult-on-ice-mia-mcpherson-4347.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":140984,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2025\/03\/01\/tundra-swan-portrait-bear-river-mbr-utah\/","url_meta":{"origin":121635,"position":3},"title":"Tundra Swan Portrait – Bear River MBR, Utah","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 1, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Today, I'm sharing a simple Tundra Swan portrait taken almost two years ago on a bright winter day at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge in northern Utah.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Tundra Swan portrait, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/tundra-swan-portrait-utah-mia-mcpherson-4922.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/tundra-swan-portrait-utah-mia-mcpherson-4922.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/tundra-swan-portrait-utah-mia-mcpherson-4922.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/tundra-swan-portrait-utah-mia-mcpherson-4922.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":80995,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2021\/03\/11\/swan-day-in-utah\/","url_meta":{"origin":121635,"position":4},"title":"Swan Day in Utah – March 13, 2021","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 11, 2021","format":"chat","excerpt":"This Saturday, March 13th, is Swan Day here in Utah. It is a day to celebrate these large, white, beautiful birds that spend time here during the winter.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Tundra Swans and winter sky, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swans-flight-cloudy-sky-mia-mcpherson-8371.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swans-flight-cloudy-sky-mia-mcpherson-8371.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swans-flight-cloudy-sky-mia-mcpherson-8371.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/05\/tundra-swans-flight-cloudy-sky-mia-mcpherson-8371.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":110686,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2023\/03\/03\/big-beautiful-tundra-swans-of-bear-river-mbr\/","url_meta":{"origin":121635,"position":5},"title":"Big & Beautiful: Tundra Swans of Bear River MBR","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"March 3, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"Yesterday morning I spent time with a flock of big, beautiful Tundra Swans at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. 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