Dinosaur feet
Seeing a scaly foot emerging from this Mute Swan’s plumage is a great reminder of the evolution of birds from theropod dinosaurs. …
S-bend
Evolution doesn’t result in perfection, but in ridiculous compromises, recoveries from enforced limits and the sheer variety of difference achieved using the …
White wedding
Swans are exceptional birds. I particularly like Mute Swans, but that’s because I’ve yet to see a Bewick’s Swan or a Whooper …
Bird portraits at Daisy Nook
Birds have evolved a wide range of faces. Here’s a Coot with that large white faceplate: And a Mute Swan with a …
The Swan’s nest
I’m walking through a narrow walkway in the reeds, looking for Reed Warbler’s nests, when I come across a Swan-made clearing in …
Waterbed
Have you ever tried making love on a waterbed? Ask a swan what it’s like. Archimedes could have predicted the outcome; you …
There are no words
If you ask this swan what species it is, it won’t tell you. It’s Mute.
The river walk
Here are a few familiar faces from my social distancing walk. This Mute Swan is one of the aggressive pair which have …
A grey day on the Teign
I’m out with my son in the early morning. He has a camera too and takes a photo of me. As we …
Flotilla
It’s a beautiful, placid scene. It’s gorgeous light on the River Teign as I spot a Mute Swan flying and then landing …
Return to Daisy Nook
In a time before the lockdown I visited Daisy Nook Country Park. It’s in Failsworth, which is a great place to have …
Bird portraits at Stover Country Park
It’s cold and I fancy a walk. There are Black Headed Gulls at Stover Country Park. I love the way their toes …
Swans’ ankles
There’s a Mute Swan upending itself on the lake. It’s giving me clear views of its ankles, or ‘backwards knees’ as many …
I’m a Loon short of a full lake
I hear that there’s a Great Northern Diver, a type of bird frequently called a Loon everywhere apart from here, on a …
Mute
I never get bored of Mute Swans, Cygnus olor: There’s something about their size, their poise and their steady pace that enthrals …
Pink Zebras and Ginger Swans
In Devon everything in the countryside takes on the colour of the soil; and that colour is often red. The Devonian red …
Mute
Photographing Swans is as difficult as photographing snow. They often appear bleached and featureless. Or bedraggled and dirty. Getting the exposure just …
Feathered friends
There’s time to visit Stover Country park and see some wildlife today. I’m taking my dad along so he can experience one …
An evening in the fields
As part of the Wildlife Trusts’ #30DaysWild I’m heading out to have some nature experiences every day this month. Today I’m heading …
From Cygnet to Swan
When did you last spend an hour so completely absorbed in something in the natural world that you forgot what time it …
Basal knob
That huge lump on the base of this Mute Swan’s beak is called a basal knob. Knowing that, however, tells you nothing …
Only an hour to spare…
There’s very good scientific evidence about the health benefits of nature. Scientists showed that people recovering from operations in hospitals needed less …
An amphibious craft – Mute Swans in and out of the water
It’s difficult to lead two different lives. Being good at two very different things always leads to compromise and there’s always someone …
Mute Swan
Here’s a drawing of a Mute Swan I did forty years ago. And here’s a photograph of a Mute Swan I took …
Mute Swan – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
It’s forty years since I drew this Mute Swan after seeing them, probably at the local park. Now here I am at …
Mute Swans – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
I was 13 years old when I saw a Mute Swan from the train. How do I remember that I was on …
Mute Swan – forty years ago in my nature notebooks
Forty years ago I was busy filling in my nature notebooks. I wrote detailed notes in blue biro in my lined notepad …