Illinois › Species › Trumpeter Swan
No season
Trumpeter Swan in Illinois, No Hunting Season
What IDNR says about trumpeter swan, with legal game and reporting steps.
Photo: ALAN SCHMIERER (CC0 1.0)
Trumpeter Swan: status and the Digest rule
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Species | Trumpeter swan |
| Illinois season | Closed all year |
| Rule | Protected species (shown in the Digest waterfowl identification section). |
Read the rule on PDF page 37 of the Digest: it replaces the season table, bag limit and license sections that other pages have.
From Digest rule (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Legal groups next to trumpeter swan in Illinois
| Legal group | Included | Remarks |
|---|---|---|
| Big game | white-tailed deer and wild turkey | Deer and turkey by permit; deer total limit two antlered deer per year. No elk, bear or other big game season. |
| Upland game birds | ring-necked pheasant (roosters only), bobwhite quail and Hungarian partridge | Chukar partridge is defined as a game bird in the Digest but has no season in the season tables; hen pheasants illegal except on controlled hunting areas. |
| Game mammals | eastern cottontail and swamp rabbit, gray squirrel and fox squirrel and woodchuck (groundhog) | |
| Small game (migratory) | mourning and white-winged dove, woodcock and crow | HIP certification required for doves and woodcock, not crows. |
| Migratory waterfowl | ducks, mergansers, coots, teal (early season), Canada goose, light geese (snow and Ross's), white-fronted goose, brant, rails (sora and Virginia) and Wilson's snipe | |
| Furbearers | raccoon, opossum, red fox, coyote, striped skunk, bobcat (by permit), badger, mink, muskrat, weasel (least and long-tailed), beaver, river otter and woodchuck | Gray fox hunting and trapping seasons are closed. |
Everything in the table has a season somewhere in the Digest; trumpeter swan does not, and the species index links each lawful alternative.
From Digest legal species pages (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Fines and suspensions for trumpeter swan
| Subject | What is printed |
|---|---|
| False turkey permit applications | Providing false or deceptive information on a turkey permit application, in addition to criminal charges, results in rejected applications, revoked permit and forfeited fees (17 Ill. Adm. Code 710.10(k)(4)). |
| Interstate Wildlife Violator Compact | A wildlife privilege suspension in a compact state is also a suspension in Illinois for the duration; a violator who fails to comply with a citation in a participating state may have home-state privileges suspended until the terms are met. |
| Statutory fines and jail terms | The Digest does not state criminal penalty amounts. The Wildlife Code (520 ILCS 5) penalty sections were not retrieved (ilga.gov unreachable), so no fines or terms are listed. |
The table shows every penalty-related entry in the data; fine amounts are absent because the sources do not print them.
From Digest page and 17 Ill. Adm. Code 710 (LII mirror, unofficial) (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Reporting illegal take of trumpeter swan
Violations go to Target Illinois Poachers, run through the IDNR law enforcement site.
| Topic | Rule |
|---|---|
| Wanton waste | Must make a reasonable effort to retrieve and include killed or crippled limited species in the bag; may not wantonly waste the usable meat (breast of a bird; hind ham and front shoulders of a mammal) or dump carcasses on a right-of-way or property without permission. |
| Possession limits and bags | May not possess game or furbearers over the daily or possession limit; each hunter must keep a separate bag; wildlife of another person must be tagged with name, address, species count and date unless in a home. |
From Digest page (Illinois Department of Natural Resources), checked November 13, 2026.
Morning light reflecting on the Ohio River at Paducah, across from Massac CountyPhoto: jjmusgrove (CC BY 2.0)
Sunset over the Mississippi River with the St. Louis skyline, the Gateway Arch and the Eads BridgePhoto: Bryan Werner (CC BY 2.0)
Sunset over the Mississippi River at Buffalo, Iowa, across from Rock Island CountyPhoto: David Brossard (CC BY-SA 2.0)
Trumpeter Swan FAQ for Illinois hunters
Why is there no season for trumpeter swan?
The rule reads: Protected species (shown in the Digest waterfowl identification section).
Which IDNR document covers trumpeter swan?
It is in the 2026-27 Digest at PDF page 37; the printed page number is two lower.
What is legal game in Illinois?
Legal game spans six groups; the species index and the season table show the dates.
What is the fine for illegal take of trumpeter swan?
A wildlife privilege suspension in a compact state is also a suspension in Illinois for the duration; a violator who fails to comply with a citation in a participating state may have home-state privileges suspended until the terms are met. The Digest does not state criminal penalty amounts. The Wildlife Code (520 ILCS 5) penalty sections were not retrieved (ilga.gov unreachable), so no fines or terms are listed.
Is there a poaching tip line?
Report it through Target Illinois Poachers on the IDNR law enforcement pages (dnr.illinois.gov/lawenforcement/target-poachers).
Does landowner permission change the rule for trumpeter swan?
The permission rule is about trespass and applies to legal game; protected animals stay protected on private land.
Do I need permits to observe trumpeter swan?
No viewing license appears among the 64 license rows we read, which are all for hunting, trapping, stamps, permits and commercial activity.
What other wildlife is protected in Illinois?
Look at the protected species list: hawks, eagles and owls; wild birds not listed as game; flying squirrel, red squirrel, white squirrel, eastern woodrat, golden mouse, rice rat, bats, and more.
Other photos on this page: jjmusgrove (CC BY 2.0); Bryan Werner (CC BY 2.0); David Brossard (CC BY-SA 2.0).