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Above Image: This swan family  at the Prairie Center of Arts, is part of Swan Program.

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Village of Schaumburg: Swan Program

 Little did I know that these beautiful swans can be fiercely aggressive and chase away even the ferocious Giant Canada Geese. And for this the village of Schaumburg started a Village Swan Program.

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Why does the village have swans?
The village Swan Program began in 1994, in an effort to control the increasing Canada Goose Population on the municipal center ground. Swan will not tolerate Canada Geese within their territory and will aggressively chase geese away to ensure a continuous supply of food for their off-springs. Smaller waterfowl like ducks and gulls are not a threat to the swans on the food source, so they peacefully co-exist.

Mute Swans contribute to the ecologically balanced pond, by reducing goose population and by consuming and recycling undesirable plant life. Unlike Canada Geese, Mute Swans spend most of their time in the water, rather than foraging for food in the lawn area.

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From the Village of Schaumburg official website.. click here..
History: The village purchased Louis and Serena, called Mated Mute Swans, in 1994 in response to the growing Canada Goose population on the municipal center pond and grounds. Breeding age pairs of Mute Swan will not tolerate Canada Geese in their breeding (nesting) area, which can cover several acres of water.

Nesting: To ensure a continuous supply of food for their young, a successful nesting pair becomes more protective after cygnets are hatched. Geese are a challenge to their food supply, therefore, the swan will chase them away. Geese eventually tire of being chased off the pond waters and fly to other more hospitable, unprotected ponds. It takes three years for swan to become full-fledged goose chasers. Mute Swan are the hardiest of all waterfowl, mate for life, and live to be 10-15 years of age in captivity. There are normally five to seven offspring every year hatching around Memorial Day.

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The Swan Family is at the Prairie Center of Arts are Mute Swans. Swans are the largest and most beautiful waterfowl. The Mute Swans are characterized with distinct white plumage and black knob above the orange bill.

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From the Village of Schaumburg official website.. click here..

Did You Know? The adult male is called a “cob” and is typically larger in size than the female. The adult male will also have a larger black “knob” at the base of his beak. The adult female is a “pen,” and the young swans are cygnets (pronounced sig-net). The cygnets hatch as fluffy balls of gray down, weighing about 7 ½ ounces. The pen keeps them with her during the first few days, after which the cob will take the first-hatched out for swimming lessons. The second week of life is the most dangerous for the cygnets. They may fall prey to such predators as pike, snapping turtles, foxes, or crows.

When the cygnets are 4-10 days old, it is time to pinion their wings. This procedure is quick and painless and prevents the development of flight feathers. This prevents the cygnets from flying off, and is also used to control the number of domesticated swan getting into the wild.

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