Black Swans

Believe it or not I still have massive amounts of photos from New Zealand that I haven't yet shared with you. I'm sure they'll work their way out into my posts for years to come.



These pictures were taken at Lake Taupo. Early in our trip I spent the afternoon at Lake Rotorua and couldn't quite figure out what I was seeing far out in the water. It looked like dozens of tiny lockness montsers.



Here in Taupo I could see that the S shapes were actually the curve of the black swan's necks.



What really struck me in New Zealand is that the animals don't appear to be scared of humans like they are here. I don't mean to say that they are those types of animals that are so used to tourists that they come up and steal your lunch.

These are still wild animals and they keep an amount of distance and a close eye on you.



But here I was, sitting on a rock by the water and this swan came right up. He or she just continued eating and swimming around while I snapped photos.

Apparently male swans are called cobs and females are called pens but I thought it rude to ask.



I hear that the under part of their wings are white. They must be magnificent in flight with wing spans up to 6 1/2 feet.



Incredible creatures. They were first introduced by Australians and later were found flying to New Zealand from other areas. This causes them to be called both exotic and native animals.



This was the first time I had seen a swan in the wild. Absolutely beautiful.

Do you have swans where you live?