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March 02, 2006 - Studying up on the swani OA • The Suffolk Times • March 2, 2006 Studying up on the swan I REMEMBER soME TIME ago the New York Stale Department of Conserva- tion or the Fish and Wildlife Service put plastic identification collars around the necks of certain Canada geese. With the ever - increasing numbers of geese in our area, the collars with their iden- tification numbers helped to determine nesting distribution, clutch size, survival rate, current population, movement patterns and more. Geese, being vegetarians, create problems when they feed on the Focus grasses of golf ON courses,play- grounds, farms NATURE and yes, even on people's lawns by Paul This high concen- $tOUtArtb tration of geese utfj?,11 also created water pollution problems and kept homeowners and businesses from using their property. These neck collars proved to be a valu- able tool in the study of the Canada goose population. Today I was surprised to see the same kind of neck collar on a "mute" swan in Downs Creek on the north side of Pe- conic Bay. (By the way, the reason they call them mute swans is that they have very little calling voice, practically none.) I wondered if the DEC or /and the Fish and Wildlife are again doing a study, this time on the mute swans in our area similar to the one done years ago on the Canada geese. While we were unable to make contact with the DEC to get any information on this collaring of the mute swans, we did hear from the Fish and Wildlife Service, saying the swan we saw could have been one of the birds they had collared in Maryland but that, more likely, it was one the DEC had collared up here. Christine Sousa of the Fish and Wildlife believes the DEC marked swans last year and the year before. We are trying through the Bird Banding Lab to see if we can find out just where this particular swan was banded and who did the banding. Many of us have "our own" pair of swans we watch throughout the year and look forward to spring, when they nest and bring off their young. Once there were no mute swans anywhere in the continental United Slates Then in the late 1800s, when swans became a fad, the first populations of swans Above: State DEC workers collaring a mute swan to be used In a study to collect data on adult survival, as well as seasonal movement patterns. We are grateful to Kevin Clarke, NYSDEC project coordinator, for sending informa- tion and the photo to us. Below: Some years ago, there was a study to try to determine why we were having +•. such an increase in Canada geese. One part of the a study was to put cs\ collars around 4 .4 � qy the necks of the geese so they could be easily identified from a distance. This particular goose was seen in the Peconic River behind the down- own s ores in Suffolk Times photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Riverhead. were let go into Long Island waters and the lower Hudson River area. Here is a perfect example of how non -na- tive birds can move into an area and because there are no predators to keep the population down, do very well and multiply rapidly - all to the detriment of native species According to the information we were able to find, between 1910 and 1912, 500 mute swans were released. From those 500 swans, it is now esti- mated there are around 3,000 plus of these year-round residents in the Long CALVERTON FUEL OIL Sernir{q Alt Of The North Fork • Automatic Delivery • Kerosene (coil for pricar . Diesel Fuel • Discounts for Large Quantities H Walter & Ed Hodun Jr. Proprietors P,i­Subj. r" Ch:.nge Wuhov w—,.g Burner Service Available 631 - 727 -64179 We accept all Major Credit Cards fiO WTO Island area. We here on the East End have seen our population of swans grow. Often, in areas like Orient, we'll see 20 to 30 or more swans in the winter all together. Over on the south shore, I've seen this gathering of swans in the hundreds During nesting time we often see a group of swans together made up of nonbreeders Swans are big birds, consuming from four to eight pounds of vegetation per day. And here's where one of the prob- lems comes with swans They feed off all kinds of vegetation on the bottom, including the all- important eelgrass In doing so, they often pull the grasses right out of the bottom. Eelgrass pro- vides an all- important nursery area for fish and shellfish. With that in mind, you can see the potential damage swans do when feeding with their long necks that enable them to reach the bottom grasses three to four feet down. We see mute swans courting and starting to nest in late March and into April. The average clutch of eggs is six but there have been times when they will lay up to 11 eggs It takes around 35 days for the eggs to hatch. It's during courtship, nest building and the raising of their young that swans can be dan- gerous Both male and female become very aggressive and drive out local ducks, like black ducks and mallards that once nested along our shores There are reports of swans becoming aggressive not only toward other swans and ducks but to people, especially small children. In some waterways, because of their aggressiveness, people have been prevented from using cer- tain recreation areas Adult mute swans because of their dominance, power and size have few enemies, the exception being the snapping turtle. Let's answer some questions I've been asked about swans Here's one, "Why are some young cygnets in a family all white and some gray ?" We're told the color is a genetic trait and is not relative to their sex. Gray cygnets will gradually turn brownish by their first winter before gaining their white plumage. White cygnets remain white. The young stay close to the parents and remain in the general area of the nest staying away from other swans for the first couple of months Young start to fly after about four to five months A snapping We often see turtle can nests of swans flooded by storm easily pull a tides and the eggs young swan gel cold and per- under water ish.If this happens, they usually build and finish it again. off. Often I get calls from a concerned person ask- ing, "What happened to my young swans? We had four and now there are only two. What happened ?" As with humans, disease can take its toll, wet weather with cool, rainy days and nights can cause hypothermia, and, as I mentioned earlier, the most probable cause is the snapping turtle. For those of you who have never seen a "big" snapping turtle, let me tell you, they are powerful killers One can easily pull a young swan under water and in no time finish it off. Concerned about the impact the mute swan has on people, wildlife and the ecosystems, the DEC initiated research on this species and so the col- lared swan No. EJ05 we saw at Downs Creek in New Suffolk is probably a part of a statewide study. (P.S. After this was written, we re- ceived an e -mail from Kevin Clarke, NYSDEC project coordinator for mute swan research in New York State, who tells us that EJ05 is a male marked in August 2005 in the Peconic River. It is a nonmigratory bird and Kevin says the swans do not travel very far, just far enough for food.) Joseph L. Townsend INSURANCE Serving the North Fork since 1950 HOMEOWNERS • MARINE • AUTO - LIFE 800 -564 -0933. 216 MAIN STREET, GREENPORT • 477 -0153 Suffolk Times •March 2, 20mstu on the swan m� Suffolk Times photo courtesy of New York State DE Above: State DEC workers collaring a mute swan to be used in a study to collect data on adult survival, as well as seasonal movement patterns. We are grateful to Kevin Clarke, NYSDEC project coordinator, for sending informs tion and the photo to us. Below: Some years ago, there was a study to try to determine why we were having such an increase in Canada geese, One part of the study was to put collars around '������ ��'" the necks of the �'�h��" geese so they could be easily identified from r a distance. This particular goose was seen in the Peconic River u %gin behind the down- town stores in Suffolk mimes photo by Paul Stoutenburgh Riverhead. ine u 1 REMEMBER SOME TIME ago the New York State Department of Conserva- tion or the Fish and Wildlife Service put plastic identification collars around the necks of certain Canada geese. With the ever - increasing numbers of geese in our area, the collars with their iden- tification numbers helped to determine nesting distribution, clutch size, survival rate, current population, movement patterns and more. Geese, being vegetarians, create problems when they feed on the FOCUS grasses of golf O N courses, play grounds, farms N A T U R E and yes, even on people's lawns. by Paul This high concen Stoutenburgh tration of geese _ also created water pollution problems and kept homeowners and businesses from using their property. These neck collars proved to be a valu- able tool in the study of the Canada goose population: Today I.was surprised to see the same kind of neck collar on a "mute" swan in Downs Creek on the north side of Pe- conic Bay. (By the way; the reason they call them mute swans is that they have very little calling voice, practically none.) I wondered if the DEC or /and the Fish and Wildlife are again doing a study, this time on the mute swans in our area similar to the one done years ago on the Canada geese. While we were unable to make contact with the DEC to get any information on this collaring of the mute swans, we did hear from the Fish and Wildlife Service, saying the swan we saw could have been one of the birds they had collared in Maryland but that, more likely, it was one the DEC had collared up here. Christine Sousa of the Fish , and Wildlife believes the DEC marked swans last year and the year before. We are trying through the Bird Banding Lab to see if we can find out just where this particular swan was banded and who did the bandine. Many of us have "our own" pair of swans we watch throughout the year and look forward to spring, when they nest and bring off their young. Once there were no mute swans anywhere in the continental United States. Then in the late 1800s, when swans became a fad, the first populations of swans were let go into Long 1sla7waters an the lower Hudson River area. Here is a perfect example of how non -na- tive birds can move into an area and because there are no predators to keep the popolation down, do very well and multiply rapidly — all to the detriment of native species. According to the information we were able to, find, between 1910 and 1912, 500 mute swans were released. From those 500 swans, it is now esti- mated there are around 3,000 plus of these year -round residents in the Long Bland area. We here on the East End have seen our population of swans grow. Often, in areas like Orient, we'll see 20 to 30 or more swans in the winter all together. Over on.the south shore, I've seen this gathering of swans in the hundreds. During nesting time we often see a group of swans together made up of nonbreeders. Swans are big birds, consuming from four to eight pounds of vegetation per day. And here's where one of the prob- lems comes with swans. They feed off all kinds of vegetation on the bottom, including the all- important eelgrass. In doing so, they often pull the grasses right out of the bottom. Eelgrass pro- vides an all- important nursery area for fish and shellfish. With that in mind, you can see the potential damage swans do when feeding with their long necks that enable them to reach the bottom grasses three to four feet down. We see mute swans courting and starting to nest in late March and into April. The average clutch of eggs is six but there have been times when tSi y will lay up to 11 eggs. It takes around 35 days for the eggs, to hatch. It's durin; courtship, nest building and the raising of their young that swans can be dan- gerous. Both male and female become very aggressive and drive out local ducks, like black ducks and mallards that once nested along our shores. There are reports of swans becoming aggressive not only toward other swam and ducks but to people, especially small children. In some waterways, because of their aggressiveness, people have been prevented from using cer- tain recreation areas. Adult mute swan: because of their dominance, power and size have few enemies, the exception being the snapping turtle. Let's answer some questions I've been asked about swans. Here's one, "Why are some young cygnets in a family all white and some gray ?" We're told the color,is a genetic trait and is not relative to their sex. Gray cygnets will gradually turn brownish by their first winter before gaining their white plumage. White cygnets remain white. The young, stay close to the parents and remain in the general area of the nest staying away from other swans for the first couple of months. Young start to fly after about four to five months. A snapping We often see turtle can nests of swans flooded by storm easily pull a tides and the eggs young swan get cold and per- under water ish. If this happens, they usually build and finish it again. off. Often I get calls from a concerned person ask- ing, "What happened to my young swans? We had four and now there are only two. What happened ?" As with humans, disease can take its toll, wet weather with cool, rainy days and nights can cause hypothermia, and, as I mentioned earlier, the most probable cause is the snapping turtle. For those of you who have never seen a "big" snapping turtle, let me tell you, they are powerful killers. One can easily pull a young swan under water anden no time finish it off. Concerned about the impact the mute swan has on people, wildlife and the ecosystems, the DEC initiated research on this species and so the col- lared swan No. EJ05 we saw at Downs Creek in New Suffolk is probably a part of a statewide study. (RS. After this was written, we re- ceived an e-mail from Kevin Clarke, NYSDEC project coordinator for mute swan research in New York State, who tells us that EJ05 is a male marked in August 2005 in the Peconic River. It is a nonmigratory bird and Kevin says the swans do not travel very far. iust far enough for food.)