I have three trumpeter swans to mount. I have mounted many ducks and geese. Is there anything I need to be cautious of with swans? What helped you in your mounting of swans? Any photos of unique mounts? Any helpful hints?
Return to Bird Taxidermy Category Menu
Just bigger birds, use bigger stuff. If there is anything special about them outside of bending those ^&^$^%$^% big wires, I don't know about it.
Get some Whinks.. Chances are, if your water is like mine it will turn em yellow when you wash...Whinks will brighten them right up, Or, used distilled water.. but that could get costly.
Don't be afraid to use an awfully large gu wire in the neck.. It's big, and its long and it needs the support. A tip I learned from a fellow taxi is to take two pieces of wire and twist them together.. that makes for an incredibly sturdy armature.
And flesh the feet.. they are so HUGE... they will shrink and look quite puny. I have beeen known to almost completely skin the toes from the bottom and then fill them with clay.. sew em up and then inject with Masters blend to get a good final shape..
Good luck and have fun..
Jon
Avoid the temptation to stop before the swan is dry. They take forever to dry. Your arms will be sore from holding it. But get it dry no matter what. All the previous is good advice.
I mold 'em. Tony is right about the drying. Big bird, big dry job. and rinsing too....big rinse job gotta get everything out of those feathers.
bodies and necks on the trumpeter. I mount about 5 a year and research has a tundra swan body that works for birds in the 23-30 pound range ssb-100, and the trumpeter body101-1 that works great for 30 plus pound birds. The flexible neck they sell works great also but needs to be cut down some on birds under 30 pounds. I have molded trumpeter heads on a 24 pound bird ans have a 34 pound bird that I am molding the head on right now, Post here if you can't find a good cast head as they can vary in size a lot and I can maybe help you out with a cast head, Good Luck One other point I should add I remove the wings on standing birds, skin,wash ,rinse and soak in white gas, remove them and let them dry while you work on the rest of the bird.I dont tumble them,the rest of the body tumbles easier and cuts down on drying time.
Are we talking about TRUMPETER or TUNDRA swans?
I didn't think Trumpeters were legal to hunt? I also didn't think that a Tundra averaged much more than 20-22 lbs..?
I do know that Trumpeters are about 40% larger than the average Tundra.
Jon
To hunt. I supposed the taxi had a job for the Goverment or an institution. Tundra Swans used to be called Whistler Swans until some yuppie changed the name. Tundra are lega game, and you are right about the size......
Average weight for Trumpeter (Cygnus buccinator) is 27.9 pounds for adult male, 22.6 pounds for adult female. Average weight for Whistling or Tundra Swan (Cygnus columbianus) is 16 pounds for an adult male and 13.9 for adult female. (F. Belrose, Ducks, Geese and Swans of North America, Stackpole Books, 1980.)
The Eurasian cousin of the Trumpeter is the Whooper Swan (Cygnus cygnus). It was discovered in Alaska by Wilke in 1944. Amchitka Island has around 400 of these birds stop over each year during their migration to and from nesting areas in Siberia.
Trumpeter swans are an incidental take species in Montana, meaning that with a valid state tag,by drawing permit, you can legally tag a trumpeter. It is what I call a gray area by USFW standards but I did talk to a USFW rep in denver permit office and she said trumpeters are legit under individual state tags although it is still illegal to target trumpeters while hunting. Most trumpeters I mount fall in the 24-34 pound class although I did do one that was 36 pounds on the digital scale. Tundras vary here from 12-23 pounds at the largest I have taken in.
Greetings,
I am looking for a white trumpeter or tundra swan skin for use in traditional alaska native regalia.
any ideas where I can get one?
-SJ