Females are slightly smaller than males. Sometimes tundras are mistaken for snow geese which are much smaller birds with black wing tips and for pelicans, or egrets. Where Found Tundra swans nest in the tundra or sheltered marshes on the Alaskan and Canadian coast near the Arctic Circle. The swans which migrate through here winter in flocks on shallow ponds, lakes and estuaries along the east coast near the Chesapeake Bay and in the marshes of Virginia and North Carolina. Another population of swans uses the western flyway from the Arctic to California's San Joaquin and Sacramento Valleys.
Swans stay in families for about one year.
They get adult plumage at about 15 months. At their nesting grounds on the Arctic coastline, swans gather and pile up grass, sedges, and mosses within 100 yards of water. The resulting nests measure about 6 feet across and 12-18 inches high. This will support the eggs above water level and provide a lookout station from which the swans can guard against predators. During incubation, females alone care for the eggs while their mates stand guard nearby.