Black Swan - description, habitat, interesting facts

The Black Swan is a beautiful waterfowl that can be seen in most ecoparks located around the world. Such birds are distinguished by elegance and grace, and their main differences from white swans are the habitat, size and character. The image of a black swan has gained popularity not only among animal lovers, but also among compilers of dream books.

Description

The homeland of the Black Swan is Australia. That is why the glory of this species spread throughout the whole world only after the discovery of the mainland. The designated continent has been little studied, but it is known that many unique representatives of plants and wildlife have disappeared from other corners of our planet. Unfortunately, the black swan population is declining and its species is on the verge of extinction. To meet such a bird in captivity today is a difficult task.

The plumage of birds has a coal color with white impregnations. This contributes to the inclusion of white feathers and their gray edging. Their beak, unlike the mute swan, is bright red. The paws of the bird, in this case, have a blue-black or charcoal color. However, young birds are not at all like adults. Their brown plumage and pink beak acquire their famous color only after five months of life. Often, a bird may appear in front of it, with its feathers and shoulder feathers curling.

Cygnusatratus is notable for its size. So, with large dimensions (body length can be one and a half meters), the wingspan of this representative class of birds is about two meters. The black swan is painted with a long neck, a neat head, and a short tail. Due to the length of the neck, the bird can get food from water bodies with a sufficiently large depth. A fairy-tale image and seemingly at first glance smoothness and slowness in no way affect the speed of the swan.
Lifestyle

The black swan takes off extremely rarely. This is explained not only by the structure of the wings and the need for open space for take-off, with a length of 70 meters, but also by a settled way of life. The warm climate, as well as unpretentiousness in food, give the swan the opportunity to stay in place for a long time, and fly to a new place only in extreme cases.

The bird feeds mainly on plants, which, by the way, in some cases are used by it as a means for organizing a nest. It is worth noting that the nest is built as close to the pond as both partners. In addition, swans can feed on fry, amphibians and crustaceans. In the event that the nesting site is located near the field with crops, then the birds are able to eat corn or wheat during raids. If there is a lot of food near the nest, then black swans will not change its location for a rather long time.

The black swan is a flock of birds that lives in colonies consisting of individuals uniting in pairs. The number of couples in a colony can be up to fifty. Interestingly, black swans can form a pair of the same sex. In this case, the males call the females only for oviposition, and then expel them and hatch the eggs on their own.

Patience and calm are the main distinguishing features of a swan. However, in some cases, young individuals may be aggressive towards other males who have attempted to settle in their habitat.

Communication of birds occurs through guttural sounds. A sonorous trumpet voice, which distinguishes a black swan from a congener of a whisperer, allows you to summon individuals to a flock.

In nature, the swan is almost completely devoid of threats from other representatives of the animal world.However, this fully applies only to adults.

Breeding

Swans find a mate at the age of two. Since then, they have been loyal to their partner for the rest of their lives. Birds breed in a rainy period of time. This is directly related to the fact that the water level rises, and the amount of feed increases markedly. The beginning of the mating season is marked by beautiful dances of partners, at the end of which the individuals mate. Clutch, as a rule, has about 7 eggs. Their swans (both female and male) hatch for 1.5 months.

Nestlings do not possess independence only in the first two days of life. During this period, they do not leave the nest. Already on the third day, the kids follow the adults in search of food. During the first 5 months of its life, a black swan is on the water, and then rises to the wing.

Captive swans and their protection

In captivity, the black swan is unpretentious. Any plant food, including cabbage, geese feed and corn, is suitable for him. Many contain geese at home, providing for them a trough that is filled with water. Among other things, the black swan perfectly tolerates wintering.

As already noted, Australia is a separate continent where many exotic species of plants and animals have survived. However, with the advent of man, all these species came under threat of destruction. So, as for black swans, they became victims of hunters and poachers who wanted to profit from attractive down and feathers, as well as taste the meat of this bird. Putting the swan on the brink of extinction, man had to take measures to preserve the species. So, the governments of the island states concluded an agreement providing for the joint protection of the black swan and the restoration of its population.

The swan recovery policy has led to significant success. So, some flocks have grown so much that they threaten the harvest in the fields located near their nests.

What do black swan dreams mean?

The black color, similar to the color of a bird, for many centuries symbolized the afterlife and sacraments. This entails many legends and traditions in which the swan acts as the earthly embodiment of dead ancestors.

If you look into the dream book, then you can also find a mention of the black swan. So, according to the collection, a dream in which such a bird is present means:

• fluctuations and dangerous connections;
• unwanted encounters;
• betrayal of loved ones;
• improved intuition;
• household chores;
• separation or departure;
• loneliness;
• dependence;
• losses.

Theory of the Black Swan

Many have heard of a theory consonant in name with the appearance of birds. However, what does she mean? The founder of this theory is N. Taleb. It is based on the fact that the very idea of ​​the existence of a bird is absurd. Indeed, in many books the black swan was mentioned, however, it was opened together with Australia. The discovery radically changed the minds of ornithologists, who were incredibly surprised by the most valuable find.

The theory is detailed in a book called Fooled Chances. The phrase “black swan” has found application in all areas of society, ranging from science to politics.

Video: Black Swan (Cygnus atratus)