Trumpeter Swan Population Report
An international (Canada and United States) range wide (Continental Population) survey of Trumpeter Swans is conducted every five (5) years during the summer months as part of the Trumpeter Swan Management Plan.
There are however three (3) sub-populations of Trumpeter Swans in North America. These are the Pacific Coast Population, the Rocky Mountain Population and the Interior Population (which includes the birds in the Province of Ontario).
The following Continental Population totals include both adults and cygnets:
1968 - 3,722; 1975 - 5,085; 1980 - 8,847; 1985 - 10,908; 1990 - 15,625; 1995 - 19,756;
2000 - 23,647; 2005 - 34,803; 2010 - 46,225
Please note that the Continental Population nearly doubled between 2000 and 2010. The 2010 total included 34,249 adults and 11,976 cygnets.
I do not have the actual numbers for the 2005 sub-populations but they were approximately:
Pacific Coast Population at 24,000 birds
Rocky Mountain Population at 5,000 birds
Interior Population at 5,000 birds
I do not have the actual numbers for the 2010 sub-populations but they were approximately:
Pacific Coast Population at 25,000 birds
Rocky Mountain Population at 10,000 birds
Interior Population at 11,000 birds
The range wide (Continental Population) survey of Trumpeter Swans conducted in 2015 was a little different in that only "white swans" were counted (adults and sub adults). The 2015 total was 63,016 "white swans" which would probably be more than doubled the 2005 total if the 2015 cygnets were counted in the total.
What was really interesting was the shift in the sub-populations:
Pacific Coast Population at 24,240 "white swans"
Rocky Mountain Population at 11,721 "white swans"
Interior Population at 27,055 "white swans"
This report was prepared with statistics obtained from the Trumpeter Swan Survey Report of 2005 and 2010 as well as from The Trumpeter Swan Society. I have been a member of The Trumpeter Swan Society since 2014 as well as a sponsor of their biannual Swan Conference in 2014 and 2016.
J. Katchin, D.V.M.