gr8bluheron1
New member
Hello all,
Very happy to have found this forum as I took up birding a few years ago. Anyways, I live nearby a lake and have had some interesting swan behavior (in my opinion) that I would love any insight into! For ease, I am summarizing the situation by year below;
2020 - Swan couple living @ the lake who have lived here for at least 4 years prior. Have had Cygnets each year.
Spring 2021 - Swan couple is seen nesting in tall brush on edge of lake and have 7 cygnets - 3 survive.
Winter 2021 - The swans flew away and I had assumed they would return once the weather improved
Early 2022 - I notice there is one swan back in the lake. He (large knob and body) is solo there for months so I had assumed it was part of the original couple that had unfortunately lost his partner.
August 2022 - a female swan with 2 larger juvenile cygnets show back up at the lake and the male begins charging them and acting territorial. Within an hour the male partner of the female shows up and the two males battle in the lake quite viciously (I thought I was going to see one be drowned). The male of the couple wins and the other male is exiled to the road nearby the lake. For the rest of the year the family lives at the lake.
Early 2023 - The swan couple leaves and a few months later (early spring) one male returns. Thinking it is the same situation as last year, I pay little mind to it. That is until this past week. The swan had been more aggressive to the swans and their babies than I had seen in the past 3 years. Then today, a cygnet just appears alongside the swan. I had not once seen this swan nesting nearby the lake (I walk around it at least twice daily) and there is no other swan insight.
I am truly baffled! My theories are the following;
1. It is the original male from the couple and he was holding this area down until the female partner and cygnets could come over. One cygnet was developed enough to swim over (it is connected to another body of water by a stream but otherwise idk how this would have happened)?
2. It is the lone male and he stole an egg from another swan's nest nearby to establish more dominance over this lake?
3. It was actually a female this whole time (but again it has a very large knob and is very large in size) and I just never saw her nesting?
I am truly hoping that someone can provide some insight into what is going on! I am so invested in this swan saga and would love to hear what others think is happening here.
Thank you all in advance.
Very happy to have found this forum as I took up birding a few years ago. Anyways, I live nearby a lake and have had some interesting swan behavior (in my opinion) that I would love any insight into! For ease, I am summarizing the situation by year below;
2020 - Swan couple living @ the lake who have lived here for at least 4 years prior. Have had Cygnets each year.
Spring 2021 - Swan couple is seen nesting in tall brush on edge of lake and have 7 cygnets - 3 survive.
Winter 2021 - The swans flew away and I had assumed they would return once the weather improved
Early 2022 - I notice there is one swan back in the lake. He (large knob and body) is solo there for months so I had assumed it was part of the original couple that had unfortunately lost his partner.
August 2022 - a female swan with 2 larger juvenile cygnets show back up at the lake and the male begins charging them and acting territorial. Within an hour the male partner of the female shows up and the two males battle in the lake quite viciously (I thought I was going to see one be drowned). The male of the couple wins and the other male is exiled to the road nearby the lake. For the rest of the year the family lives at the lake.
Early 2023 - The swan couple leaves and a few months later (early spring) one male returns. Thinking it is the same situation as last year, I pay little mind to it. That is until this past week. The swan had been more aggressive to the swans and their babies than I had seen in the past 3 years. Then today, a cygnet just appears alongside the swan. I had not once seen this swan nesting nearby the lake (I walk around it at least twice daily) and there is no other swan insight.
I am truly baffled! My theories are the following;
1. It is the original male from the couple and he was holding this area down until the female partner and cygnets could come over. One cygnet was developed enough to swim over (it is connected to another body of water by a stream but otherwise idk how this would have happened)?
2. It is the lone male and he stole an egg from another swan's nest nearby to establish more dominance over this lake?
3. It was actually a female this whole time (but again it has a very large knob and is very large in size) and I just never saw her nesting?
I am truly hoping that someone can provide some insight into what is going on! I am so invested in this swan saga and would love to hear what others think is happening here.
Thank you all in advance.
