All swans are protected in Minnesota. The DNR Enforcement Division reports nine summonses issued for the unlawful taking of swans in 1999. Steve Kittelson, DNR Nongame Wildlife Swan Restoration Project leader, advises hunters to be aware of the differences between a snow goose and a swan. Snow geese are white birds with black wing tips, and are small birds only 2 to 2 feet in length, weighing about 5 to 6 pounds. Snow geese have short necks that are only about one third as long as the rest of its body.
Snow geese usually travel in large flocks and fly with rapid wingbeats.
Swans are all-white birds with no black on their bodies or wings. The long graceful necks of swans are as long as their bodies. Swans fly with slow, steady wingbeats and usually travel in family groups of only two to 10 birds. Ross' geese through Minnesota are generally small. Most light goose sightings have been made in the southwestern part of the state, generally west of a line from Mankato to Fergus Falls.