Mute Swan

Notes:

It's always a trill meeting swans with their young on the water. As long as you keep your distance there is nothing to worry about. But never get in between the elders and ther offspring. Young birds, called cygnets, are not the bright white of mature adults, and their bill is dull greyish-black, not orange, for the first year. The down may range from pure white to grey to buff, with grey/buff the most common. The white cygnets have a leucistic gene. All Mute Swans are white at maturity, though the feathers (particularly on the head and neck) are often stained orange-brown by iron and tannins in the water.