What to Look and Listen For This largest of North American waterfowl is 45-60 inches long, with a wingspan of more than seven feet. It is named for its clear buglelike call of one or two notes. Adults are all white, with a mostly black bill and black legs and feet. The forehead and bill slope in a straight and even line to the tip of the bill.
Immature birds are grayish brown with a light-colored bill.
At rest, trumpeter swans often hold the base of the neck kinked to rest along the back. Look for these birds on large sheltered bodies of water, such as lakes and ponds. In the Far West, trumpeters winter along the coast in brackish water. All birds winter entirely within North America. Resident inland birds can tolerate extremely cold weather.