I have focused on the mute swans, their history around the world and especially in the United States, for seven years. There is much misinformation on these birds and they have not been studied in the United States, so I sought data wherever they appear, including some exotic places.
There have been a handlful of international experts on the swans, most very reliable, one I can think of that is very strange, but very powerful, who has made it his goal to kill off every mute swans on the American continent.
The material I write is based on actual studies,international seminars, personal communications (it is really quite easy to speak to people in this field, no matter how famous they are). The data is clear and things like fossils cannot be faked. I am confident in what I say and can back it up. Every quote has been passed by the speaker, for approval to use it here and in other materials I am preparing.
The summary is: Mute swans circle the globe in certain northern latitudes. They in fact do migrate if they are not pinioned, some from the east coast of Russia to northern Africa, into China, India, Iran, Japan, Iraq,Israel, Greece,Italy Poland and throughout most of Europe. Many countries claim them as their own and honor them on stamps and coins.
Here in the United States the federal agencies have been working on placing trumpeter swans throughout the country, despite fact that historically, including fossil records, the trumpeters were never in most of the northern tier states, beyond Minnesotta. They were never in New England, for example. Hunting license sales being the income for agencies, requires trophy birds or animals to jkeep the public interest now that hunter numbers have plummeted. The trumpeter swan has been deemed worthy of being such a "trophy bird,even though their numbers are below 30,000 on this continent and millions of tax payer dollars have been spent on restoring them from near extinction, seventy five years ago.
Anyone interested in seeing a science paper, prepared with a man who has written on waterfowl for the Brittanica and works for both USF&W and the Canadian Wildlife Service, can email me at MBTAAdvocates@aol.com. I'll be happy to send you the paper.
My efforts are all about saving the swans, the mute swans, the trumpeters,tundra, whooper and Bewickii. They are among the most ancient birds and are a gift to anyone who has them in their lives.