SWAN, Cygnus, a genus of birds of the duck (q.v.) family (anatiche), constituting a very distinct section of the family. They have a bill about as long as the head, of equal breadth throughout, higher than wide at the base, with a soft cere, the nostrils placed about the middle; the neck very long, arched, and with 23 vertebra; the front toes fully webbed, the hind toe without membrane; the keel of the breast-bone very large; the intestines very long, and with very long caeca. They feed chiefly ou vegetable sub stances, as the seeds and roots of aquatic plants, but also on fish-spawn, of which they are great destroyers. They are the largest of the anatida. They have a hissing note like geese, which they emit when offended, and strike with their wings in attack or defense. The common notion, that a stroke of a swan's wing is sufficient to break a man's leg, is exaggerated. The COMMON SWAN, MUTE SWAN, or TAME SwAzr (C. olor), is ' about 5 ft. in entire length, and weighs about 30 lbs. It is known to live for at least 30 years. The male is larger than the female. The adults of both sexes are pure white, with a reddish bill; the young (cygnets) have a dark bluish-gray plumage, and lead-colored bill. The bill is surmounted by a black knob at the base of the upper mandible, and has a black nail at its tip. In its wild state, this species is found in the eastern parts of Europe and in Asia; in a half-domesticated state it has long been a common orna ment of ponds, lakes, and rivers in all parts of Europe. It is an extremely beautiful bird when seen swimming, with wings partially elevated, as if to catch the wind, and finely curving neck. The ancients called the swan the bird of Apollo or of Orpheus, and ascribed to it remarkable musical powers, which it was supposed to exercise partic ularly when its death armroaehed. It has. in reality. a soft low voice. plaintive. and with little variety, which is to be heard chiefly when it is moving about with its young. 'The nest of the swan is a large mass of reeds and rushes, near the edge of the water, an islet being generally preferred. From 5 to 7 large eggs are laid, of a dull greenish-white color. The female swan sometimes swims about with the unfledged young on her back; and the young continue with their parents until the next spring. The swan is now sel dom used in Britain as an article of food, but in former times it was served up at every , great feast, and old books are very particular in directions how to roast it and to pre pare proper gravy.—The POLISH bWAN (C. immutabilis), of which flocks have occasion . ally been seen in Britain in winter, differs from the common swan in its orange-colored bill, in the smaller tubercle at its base, and in the shape and position of the nostrils. The young are also white, like the adults. It belongs chiefly to the north-eastern parts of Europe. Many naturalists regard it as the true wild state of the common swan.—The WHISTLING SWAN, ELK SWAN, or HoorEn (C. ferus), abounds in the northern parts of Europe and Asia. Flocks frequently visit Britain in severe winters, and their migra
tions extend as far s. as Barbary. A few breed in the Orkney islands, but the greater 'number in more northern regions. The size is about equal to that of the common swan, and the color is similar, but the bill is more slender, is destitute of knob, and is black at the tip, and yellow at the base. This bird is frequently brought to the London mar ket. The names hooper and whistling swan are derived from the voice. The anatom ical differences between this species and the common swan are more considerable than the external, particularly in the double keel of the breast-bone forming a cavity which receives a long curvature of the wind-pipe.—BEwICK's SWAN (C. Bezeick,h), another native of northern Europe, is more rare in Britain, but flocks are sometimes seen. It is about one-third smaller than the whistling swan.—The AMERICAN SWAN (C. Americanus) nearly resembles Bewick's swan. It breeds in the northern parts of North America, and its winter migrations only extend to North Carolina.—The TRUMPETER SWAN (C. buc,cinator) is another American species, breeding chiefly within the Arctic circle, but of which large flocks may be seen in winter as far s. as Texas. It is rather smaller than the common swan.—The ancients spoke of a black swan proverbially as a thing of which the existence was not to be supposed, but Australia produces a BLACK SWAN (C. atratus), rather smaller than the common swan, the plumage deep black, except the primaries of the wings, which are white. The bill is blood-red. It has been introduced into Britain, and breeds freely. It is very abundant in some parts of Aus tralia.—The BLACK-NECKED SWAN (C. nigricollis) is a South American species, as is the DUCK-BILLED SWAN (C. anatoides), the smallest of all the species, white, with black tipped primaries, common about the strait of Magellan. It is a curious circumstance that the black color appears more or less in all the species of the southern hemisphere, and in them alone, except in the approach to it made in cygnets.
Swans, according to the law of England, are birds royal. When they are found in a partially wild state, on the sea and navigable rivers, they are presumed to belong to the crown, and this is one of the prerogatives of the crown, though it may be delegated to a subject. The royal birds generally have a mark on them, and the king's swan-herd once was an important person. A subject is not entitled to have a swan-mark unless he has a qualification of land, and has a grant from the crown, or prescriptive use. But any person may have swans in his grounds in a tame state, and then he has a prop erty in them. Whoever steals or destroys swans' eggs, forfeits 5s. for every egg, and whoever steals a marked swan of the crown, or a tame swan. commits felony. In Scot land, there is some trace of the bird having been once treated with royal honors, but latterly they haire been In the category of other tame birds.