Trumpeter swans make a comeback, now thrive since pairs were introduced near Harvard in 1980s

Trumpeter swans were almost wiped out here and across their native lands by the 1910s and 1920s, said Jeff Aufmann of the McHenry County Audubon Society.

“There were no protections for any birds back then. They were hunted for food,” and birds like the trumpeter swan, one of the largest birds in North America, with their white feathers, were coveted for women’s hats, Aufmann said.

[ Photos: Trumpeters swans make a comeback in McHenry County ]

Even 20 years ago, the only native trumpeter swans seen in the McHenry County probably were passing through during migration, he said.

“But now, they are quite common,” in McHenry County, Aufmann said.

That may be due in part to Henri Giugni.

In 1985, he and his wife, June, bought farmland outside of Harvard. In addition to building their English-style manor house, Giugni worked on transforming the land. He put in a manmade lake and ponds, planted tens of thousands of trees and created a stream that runs through the property.

A lifelong bird lover, Giugni got a federal permit in the late 1980s that allowed him to buy trumpeter swans from Wisconsin breeders. He bought four pairs and brought them to the lake at what he calls Somerset Manor.

“They started nesting here, or across the road” in wetlands there, Giugni said. As cygnets hatched every year, they started spreading and “taking off to different parks in McHenry County.”

Aufmann knows of at least three locations where pairs of trumpeter swans can now be found in the area: the McHenry dam on the Fox River, Exner Marsh Conservation Area in Lake in the Hills and Lippold Park in Crystal Lake. Giugni also says there are trumpeter swans at Glacial Park Conservation Area near Ringwood.

Those birds may be among those that return to Harvard to overwinter.

Using aerators, Giugni keeps the manmade lake at Somerset free of ice during winter. Beginning in late November until water opens up elsewhere in the region in February, swans return to the lake. Almost 100 will show up for the morning or evening feeding. Maybe half that number will remain through the night, sleeping on the edge of the ice or on land, he said.

“The will stay until the end of February or early March – every year is different – until they start building their new nests,” Giugni said.

On Sunday evening, Giugni counted 70 swans on his lake.

It is not uncommon for trumpeter swans to stay through the winter if there is open water and a food supply, Aufmann said. The birds, which can weigh 25 to 30 pounds, prefer shallow ponds where they can forage for water plants.

Giugni feeds tons of corn to the swans and other birds that come through. He will see the occasional tundra swan – which are smaller than trumpeters and migrate through in the winter – and mute swans, too.

Mute swans are more of the classic swan seen in children’s books with an orange bill and curved neck, Aufmann said. They do not have a call – that is why they are mute swans – and are imported from England. Trumpeter swans have a call that sounds like a trumpet blaring and have a straighter neck.

When he leads bird-watching groups, Aufmann said he is always sure to point out the trumpeters.

“That is our swan, that is our native swan, not some park bird” brought in by the English, he said.

The trumpeter swans are not the only water fowl that come through Somerset Manor, Giugni said. He sees mergansers, ospreys, coots and loons stop by. A flock of pelicans came through last summer, so did a few sandhill cranes.

“They just come and leave,” he said.

A bald eagle is also nesting about 300 feet from the property’s main entrance, Giugni said.

He and June have been in the news, as the couple is planning to sell the English style manor house and half the property at auction, now set for Dec. 19. His plan is to retain half of the land and the lake rights and build a smaller house for he and June across the lake.

“I am pretty sure the flock would die off unless I keep [the lake] open and them fed,” Giugni said.

Aufmann encourages people who want to see McHenry County’s native bird population to participate in the Christmas Bird Count, set for Saturday, Dec. 14. Now it its 124th year, the annual Audubon Christmas Count is a reaction to an older tradition, he said. Information on the Audubon Christmas Bird Count can be found here at audubon.org/community-science/christmas-bird-count.

“The tradition on Christmas Day was to go out and shoot birds. Shoot as many birds as they could and would brag about who shot the most,” Aufmann said. “So let’s go out and count the birds instead.”