Swans are birds of the genus Cygnus within the family Anatidae.
[4] The swans' closest relatives
include the geese and ducks. Swans are grouped with the closely related geese in
the subfamily Anserinae where they form the tribe Cygnini. Sometimes, they are considered a
distinct subfamily, Cygninae.
Swan
Temporal range: Late
Miocene – Holocene[1][2]
PreꞒ
Pg
Mute swans (Cygnus olor)
Scientific classification
Domain: Eukaryota
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Anseriformes
Family: Anatidae
Subfamily: Anserinae
Genus: Cygnus
Garsault, 1764
Type species
Anas olor[3]
Gmelin, 1789
Species
6 living, see text.
Synonyms
Cygnanser Kretzoi, 1957
There are six living and many extinct species of swan; in addition, there is a species known as
the coscoroba swan which is no longer considered one of the true swans. Swans usually mate
for life, although "divorce" sometimes occurs, particularly following nesting failure, and if a
mate dies, the remaining swan will take up with another. The number of eggs in
each clutch ranges from three to eight.[5]
An adult mute swan (Cygnus olor) with cygnets
in Vrelo Bosne, Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
Contents
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Taxonomyedit
The genus Cygnus was introduced in 1764 by the French naturalist François Alexandre Pierre de
Garsault.[6][7] The English word swan, akin to the German Schwan, Dutch zwaan and
Swedish svan, is derived from the Indo-European root *swen(H) ('to sound, to sing').[8][9] Young
swans are known as cygnets, or, less commonly, as swanlings.[10][11][12][13][14][15] The former derives
from Old French
