The 19th-Century Trade in Swan Skins and Quills

Trumpeter Swans in the Strawberry Lakes Area of Southeast Saskatchewan

“…The Trumpeter Swan, the largest of North America's native waterfowl, and the largest of the world's seven swan species, was formerly widespread in northern North America, certainly on the western half of the continent, and in much of the east (Banko, 1960;Lumsden 1984). The original population was vastly reduced by subsistence harvesting and habitat change, and likely by the massive 19 th century harvest of swan skins and quills (Houston and Houston, 1997). In the early decades of the 20 th century, the species was thought to be on the verge of extinction due to the very low numbers known to exist -at one time thought to be fewer than 70 birds in the wild (Mitchell and Eichholz, 2010).…”

The new Porcupine Forest flock of Trumpeter Swans, Cygnus buccinator, in Saskatchewan

“…In the 19" century, the Trumpeter Swan nested throughout most of what is now Saskatchewan, but numbers dropped precipitously with over-harvesting: between 1821 and 1841, 16655 swan skins were taken from the English (Churchill) River district, 22491 from the Swan River district and 2382 from Cumberland House, most of these being Trumpeter Swans. In 1837 alone, over 100 000 swans and geese from the Hudson's Bay Territory were sacrificed for their quills (Houston et al 1997). In most areas of western North America, the few remaining Trumpeters were shot and their eggs, when available, taken for food, before all but the earliest settlers appeared.…”