These pictures were taken on 18th 
April at a neighbours pond about 10 miles east of our place. The top picture is the female or pen swan and the lower picture is the male or cob. They are an old world species that have been introduced to North America, mainly in parks and zoo's but there are some wild colonies on Vancouver Island and the great lakes. The pen was quite placid, but the cob was ready to attack me for invading his space. He didn't give me much time to take his picture as can be seen by the ripples on the water. He was really motoring.
Tuesday, April 18, 2006
Mute Swan
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2 comments:
Hi again Fred
Can you tell me if when a swan rises his wings as this one has in the picture does it mean that he is feeling threatened? I have seen geese do similar poses as well as swans and I thought it was our signal to get lost! hehehehe
Once again you got a great shot!
Sue
Hi Sue;
You're right. That is his agressive pose although I have seen them just swimming around in a similar pose, but possibly the wings weren't quite as high. They can be a very agressive bird and I've even heard that they can break bones with their wings although I'm not sure if that is true. You are wise to keep your distance however.
Fred
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