As the whooper swan is a true bird of the north, it is no wonder it feels at home in the Arctic Circle Hiking Area. Swans nest in the quiet ponds of aapa mires, but a particularly large number of them can be spotted around the Arctic Circle during the spring and summer migrations.

A whooper swan flying overhead is easy to identify by its pure white plumage and trumpet-like call heard from the air. The yellow and black colouring of the beak is another identifying sign.
The whooper swan is extremely well adapted to very cold conditions. The swan's legs are a good example of this. They have few muscles, reducing the amount of energy needed to keep them warm. The warm blood flowing into the legs and feet runs very close to the cold blood leaving these extremities. This cools down the blood going into the legs and warms up the blood returning to the heart, reducing heat loss. The whooper swan may also pull one foot up and warm it under the plumage and in extreme cases, when at risk of freezing, release more warm blood to the extreme parts of the body.
The whooper swan nests in the northern parts of Iceland and Eurasia, all the way to the Pacific Ocean. The northern boundary of the swan's nesting range is determined by its need for waters that stay ice free for around 150 days a year. In Finland, the breeding population has traditionally been strongest in the sparsely populated north, but nowadays swans living in the nutrient-rich lakes of the south have more young. This is balancing out the populations.
Despite its large size, the whooper swan avoids large open lake stretches and selects ponds in aapa mires and spruce mires for its nesting sites. It builds its nest on the shore and lays 4 to 7 eggs in April or May. Swans defend the nest aggressively against all intruders. The cygnets that hatch after an incubation period of more than a month are initially grey and acquire their white plumage after moulting in the following summer. The cygnets spend their first winter with their parents. If the winter comes exceptionally early, it may prove fatal to flightless cygnets.
As a large white bird, the whooper swan has always fascinated people. It is the national bird of Finland and an important part of Finnish culture that has been immortalised in paintings, poetry and music alike.

The whooper swan is also a symbol of nature conservation in Finland. The species was on the verge of extinction in the early 20th century, with only a handful of nesting pairs left. However, the books about the whooper swan written by Yrjö Kokko, who worked as a veterinarian in Muonio, sparked enthusiasm for conservation, and the swan was fully protected. Today there are 10,000 nesting pairs in Finland, and this bird of the wilderness can even be seen in cities. In the Arctic Circle, the best place to watch swans is Vaattunkilampi.

Science centre and hiking information

Science Centre Pilke and hiking information