The Greater Yellowstone Trumpeter Swan Working Group

Each year, the Greater Yellowstone Trumpeter Swan Working Group meets to discuss the status of Trumpeter Swans in the tristate area (Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming). This year’s meeting took place in West Yellowstone, MT on 12-13 March. Among the good news was that 1,043 swans were counted in fall of 2018. This is the highest total recorded since birds began to be counted in 1931. Much of the recent increase is due to restoration efforts in Montana that used birds provided by the Wyoming Wetland Society. However, the essential coordination of this work has been conducted by the Pacific Flyway Council and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, in cooperation with state wildlife agencies and private organizations. The Swan Partnership is poised to increase the number of swans that we will be producing in the next few years. Our hope is that we can do our part to continue this positive population trend and work with state and federal agencies to restore the resident Rocky Mountain Trumpeter Swan population.