Whooper Swan
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Cygnus cygnus
Scarce & local Winter Visitors at a few traditional sites 14,500 from November-March.
Rare breeder.
Breeds in Iceland & Eastern Scandinavia.
Winters south to North Africa.
Adults are larger than Bewick's Swans with more yellow than black (Bewick's swans have more black than yellow).
They are also pure white, but the head and neck are often stained rusty-yellow when feeding in water rich in tannins or iron compounds.
Juveniles are are uniform pale grey to greyish-brown, with the same bill pattern as adults but with the yellow replaced by pink.
In flight, they are simliar to a Mute Swan but have more yellow in the bill not orange.
The call is lower-pitched on average: kloo-kloo-kloo in groups of three or four.