Visiting Swan

[yourlibrarian]

I've only seen one here twice before, once in the months after I moved in, and again a few years ago. Unfortunately just as this time, I had been on my way to the grocery, and I assumed I'd have time to take photos when I came home. Which I didn't because it was gone.



So this time I drove back home, grabbed the camera and got some photos. And then I told my partner so he could get closer and take some better ones while I was at the store. They've recently mowed down the field in preparation for planting and there's a lot of grass and plant material on the lake, which may have attracted the swan to stop on its migration.



The swan was eating pretty continuously while we snapped. I was delighted to see it was still there for a week. Guess we had plenty of food on tap.



Nothing like a duck beside it to make it clear how big these birds are.



Was amused to capture its legs in the shot above.



It wasn't the only stopover visitor. There was also this seagull who was trawling the ground rather than water.



Not sure which species was crossing the swan but it made for a neat catch, which we didn't even realize until we uploaded the pics to the computer.

Comments

[shirebound]

That's such a cool final shot. Thank you for sharing!

[yourlibrarian]

Yes, it was a nice surprise!

[full_metal_ox]

You captured a cygnine transit!

[ribirdnerd]

Nice pics, The mallard looks so small in comparison.

[yourlibrarian]

It does, doesn't it! When I first spotted the swan a few years ago my partner was dubious and asked if I was sure it wasn't our Ghost Duck. Er, no, those two are hard to confuse!

[turlough]

Such a handsome swan!

[yourlibrarian]

Indeed! Although something that amused me is that in every photo it was dribbling water 😄

[pauraque]

Very nice sighting! I believe the orange bill makes this a Mute Swan. The photobomber bird's white wing stripe and general grayish coloration is making me think Spotted Sandpiper, but I wouldn't stake my life on it. Your gull appears to be a Ring-billed Gull in breeding plumage. :)

[yourlibrarian]

Good to know! And it's possible, we've seen a sandpiper in the area before.

[sparowe]

Lovely! And the other birds truly do help for scale. :)

[yourlibrarian]

Definitely, even the Canada geese are noticeably smaller.

[kazzy_cee]

That bottom photo is so interesting! Amazing result!

[yourlibrarian]

It was a fun surprise!

[silveradept]

An excellent set of shots, and that's a pretty big bird!

[yourlibrarian]

Thanks! Yes, I could spot it from afar.

[neonpossibilities]

I never realized how big swans were, but the mallard gives a good idea of the scale :O

[yourlibrarian]

It does! I was glad I could spot it from so far away.