02/27/2026
The heaviest bird in North America, and with a wingspan of about 8 ft, the Trumpeter Swan in flight is spectacular to see.
For many years this sight was an impossibility in Iowa. Trumpeter Swans were nearly wiped out by hunting and loss of habitat, extirpated from Iowa by 1880 and reduced to only 70 birds in the entire continental USA. A second population was found in Alaska and Canada, and the swans were given protection by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act in 1918.
Starting in 1993 the DNR began releasing swans back to Iowa waterways every year, with the hope to one day again have a stable population, working with surrounding states.
Today, there are as many as 150 breeding pairs in Iowa in restored and protected wetland areas. Here in Wayne County we see some of the swans that stay the winter in Iowa, as well as migrating birds heading north for the oncoming spring.
Listen for their herald trumpet calls that gave them their name, and watch for the massive white wings in our wetlands, it’s quite a special sight.
