Photo: Vasily Fedosenko / Reuters
A Mute Swan (Cygnus olor) appears to be black, instead of white, while it swims during sunset, on a lake near the town of Vileika in Belarus. Below, a pair of Black Swans (Cygnus atratus) show their true colour ( in full light - not silhouetted). Black Swans traditionally bred in southeast and southwest Australia, where they were first described in 1790. They were soon introduced to various countries as ornamental birds and many escaped to exist in the wild. They have existed in flocks of hundreds and thousands in some places.
Photo: Dave Watts
Photo: J. J. Harrison
In the photo above, a black swan is shown in flight and reveals it is actually a black and white swan, because of the striking presence of its white primary flight feathers, which normally do not show when the big bird is on the ground or in water.
Please comment if you wish.
BarrytheBirder
1 comment:
Hi Barry, what could have nature have in mind, by letting the bird have white feathers which only are to be seen when it is flying. Will those also be shown when it is defending itself? Maybe at night time the white will scare the attacker? What do you think?
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