# Mute swan (*Cygnus olor*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/mute-swan  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The mute swan (Cygnus olor) is a bird in the waterfowl subgroup, belonging to the family Anatidae in the order Anseriformes. It is a medium-sized bird by body mass, with adults weighing 10.68 kg (from 9.6 to 11.8 kg), a body length of 1.475 m and a wingspan of 2.3 m. The mute swan is a migratory, aquatic herbivore of wetland habitats. It lays one clutch per year of 5.95 eggs, which are incubated for 36 days, and it is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 9.6 kg – 11.8 kg |
| Length | 1.25 m – 1.7 m |
| Height | 1.2 m |
| Wingspan | 2.1 m – 2.5 m |
| Lifespan | 27.7 years |
| Diet | Herbivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 70 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | wetland |
| Egg incubation | 36 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 5.95 |
| Age at maturity | 3 years – 3.24 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Aquatic |
| Migration | Migratory |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Anseriformes
- family: Anatidae
- genus: Cygnus
- species: *Cygnus olor* (J. F. Gmelin, 1789)

Synonyms: *Anas mansuetus*, *Anas olor*, *Cygnus bicolor*, *Cygnus gibbus*, *Cygnus mutus*, *Sthenelides olor*

## Common questions

### How big is a mute swan?

Adult Mute swans weigh 10.68 kg, with a body length of 1.475 m, a height of 1.2 m and a wingspan of 2.3 m.

### What does the mute swan eat?

The mute swan is a herbivore.

### What habitat does the mute swan live in?

The mute swan lives in wetland habitats and has an aquatic lifestyle.

### Is the mute swan endangered?

No. The mute swan is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, which is not a threatened category.

### How long does a mute swan live?

Sources give a lifespan of 27.69 years for the mute swan, with values up to 70 years.

### How many eggs does a mute swan lay?

The mute swan lays 5.95 eggs per clutch, with one clutch per year and an incubation period of 36 days.

### What kind of animal is the mute swan?

The mute swan is a bird in the waterfowl subgroup, in the family Anatidae and the genus Cygnus.

### Who named the mute swan?

The mute swan, Cygnus olor, was named by (J. F. Gmelin, 1789).

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Mute swan (Cygnus olor). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/mute-swan