Great Lakes Echo (http://greatlakesecho.org/tag/swans/)
Residents of a small west Michigan lake recently limited a policy on killing invasive mute swans to only those that are aggressive. State officials say the bird can displace native trumpeter swans, eat and destroy wetland vegetation and chase wildlife and even people.
It’s time to break out the brass band because trumpeter swans are back.
Standing up to 4-feet tall with up to an 8-foot wingspan, trumpeter swans are the largest waterfowl in North America. Their Great Lakes range includes: Minnesota, Wisconsin, Michigan, Ohio, New York and Ontario.
Early settlers hunted these birds nearly to extinction in the 1800s — using them to make powder puffs and feathered hats.