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Black Swan![]() "koolyn", "mooroocoochin", "burbugate", "conawarre", "coonawa", "dunedoo", "koogarra", "kooraloo", "koorawarri", "kootie", "kungari", "mullewa"; Size: 1.1-1.4 m; wing span 1.6-2 m Weight: 3.7-9 kg |
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See Black
Swan at Wikipedia |
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Photos |
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ADULT |
The sexes of birds shown below were not determined by individual birds' appearances, but by comparison with a nearby partner. Male Black Swans are taller than females, but otherwise not distinguishable.
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MALE |
Near-frontal view of a male Black Swan resting in shallow water
[Mother
of Ducks Lagoon NR, NSW, March 2012]
Lateral view of a male Black Swan
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, March 2006]
Close-up lateral view of a male Black Swan (photo courtesy of A.
Ross-Taylor)
[Carrara, Gold Coast, QLD, 2014]
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FEMALE |
Dorsal view of a female Black Swan
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2010]
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PAIR |
Near-lateral view of a pair of Black Swans, male in front
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Claremont, Perth, WA, July 2021]
Lateral view of a pair of Black Swans, male at front right
[20 km South of Narrabri, NSW, March 2006]
Lateral view of a pair of Black Swans, male on the left, with a
female Hardhead
(photo courtesy of
V. Collins)
[Dangars Lagoon, near Uralla, NSW, February 2021]
Near-dorsal view of a pair of Black Swans, male on the left, with a
female Eurasian Coot
(photo courtesy of
V. Collins)
[Dangars Lagoon, near Uralla, NSW, February 2021]
Lateral view of a pair of Black Swans in flight
[Goran Lake, NSW, February 2022]
Pair of Black Swans taking off in a hurry
[Urunga board walk, Urunga Heads, NSW, January 2011]
Sex unknown |
Close-up frontal/near-dorsal view of two Black Swans
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Forever Wild Shared Earth Reserve, Mareeba, QLD, October 2020]
Close-up lateral view of a Black Swan
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Forever Wild Shared Earth Reserve, Mareeba, QLD, October 2020]
Close-up lateral view of three Black Swans
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Forever Wild Shared Earth Reserve, Mareeba, QLD, October 2020]
When such massive birds try to lift off, one had better not get in
their way... (like the Dusky
Moorhen under the feet of the leading swan)
[Mother
of Ducks Lagoon NR, NSW, March 2012]
Frontal view of a Black Swan in flight
[Goran Lake, NSW, June 2012]
Bird trivia question: What is THAT? Click on image to see the full
picture
[Goran Lake, NSW, June 2012]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
Close-up lateral view of a juvenile Black Swan; note the light-grey
fringes
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, November 2022]
Lateral view of a family of Black Swans with fully grown
offspring, 2nd and 3rd in line (photo courtesy of R. Russell)
[Mount Molloy, QLD, January 2015]
Two juvenile Black Swans having a good look at an
Australasian Swamphen
(photo courtesy of C. Lawrence)
[Commonwealth Park Lake, Canberra, ACT, September 2015]
Pair of Black Swans with three cygnets
(photo courtesy of R. Druce)
Dorsal view of a family of Black Swans with three juveniles
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, November 2010]
Pair of Black Swans with a cygnet; according to size, the male
is probably the bird at the centre
(photo courtesy of M. Windeyer)
[Taronga Western Plains Zoo, Dubbo, NSW, April 2016]
Pair of Black Swans with 3 cygnets
(photo courtesy of
V. Collins)
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, September 2021]
Family of Black Swans (photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
[Robina, Gold Coast, QLD, May 2015]
Black Swan with a clutch of four cygnets
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, July 2022]
Pair of Black Swans with a big clutch of five cygnets
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Centennial Park, Sydney, NSW, August 2017]
Pair of Black Swans with a big clutch of five cygnets
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Centennial Park, Sydney, NSW, August 2017]
Clutch of five Black Swan cygnets
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Centennial Park, Sydney, NSW, August 2017]
"Rudder full left!" Note the fully webbed foot
(photo courtesy of
V. Collins)
[Narrabri Lake, NSW, September 2021]
Near-frontal view of a Black Swan cygnet
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, October 2022]
Lateral view of a Black Swan cygnet
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, October 2022]
Clutch of 5 Black Swan cygnets in their land of plenty
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, October 2022]
Black Swan flapping its wings, which does not seem to faze the cygnets
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, October 2022]
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Breeding information |
Breeding season: Jul - Sep | Eggs: 5 - 6 | Incubation period: 35 - 45 days | Fledging age: 120 - 160 days |
The breeding season depends significantly on geographical latitude. In the tropical north Black Swans breed Feb - Apr. Given the right conditions, they can breed any time of the year.
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Nest |
"bungobittah", "lar", "malunna", "jindi" [bundjalung] = nest [Aboriginal] |
Type: Basket | Material: Reeds | Height above ground: N/A |
Close-up view of a Black Swan on its nest
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Claremont, Perth, WA, November 2022]
Close-up view of a Black Swan on its nest
(photo courtesy of J. Thurmer)
Black Swan protecting its clutch against rain
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Claremont, Perth, WA, July 2021]
Overview of a massive Black Swan nest mound
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Claremont, Perth, WA, July 2021]
While one Black Swan is incubating, the partner engages in some
home repair and maintenance
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Claremont, Perth, WA, August 2021]
The person near this Black Swan nest provides a reference scale
for both the size of the nest mound and the depth of water
(photo courtesy of D. Johnston)
[Macquarie
Marshes NP, NSW, 1989]
A washed up heap of seaweed, after some reshaping, also makes for
a good Black Swan nest
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Paynesville, VIC, April 2023]
This Black Swan built its nest in an ephemeral wetland on a grain field that subsequently fell dry again
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Eggs |
"boyanga", "booyanga", "derinya", "dirandil", "koomura", "mirk", "ngampu", "nooluk", "pateena", "pum-pum" = Egg; "dirundirri" = eggs [Aboriginal]; "gawu" = eggs [gamilaraay] |
Size: 105 x 66 mm | Colour: Creamy green | Shape: Tapered oval |
Close-up view of a Black Swan nest with 7 eggs inside
(photo courtesy of D. Johnston)
[Macquarie
Marshes NP, NSW, 1989]
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Behaviour |
Social behaviour: Communal | Mobility: Nomadic | Elementary unit: Pair/flock |
There is a separate page describing Black Swan courtship behaviour.
Male Black Swan trying to impress a female
[New Quipolly Dam, near Quirindi, NSW, June 2019]
Male Black Swan trying to impress the competition
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Herdsman, Perth, WA, July 2022]
Like other aquatic species, Black Swans are known to carry their
offspring on their backs
[Little Llangothlin
NR, NSW, August 2015]
Female Black Swans seen preening standing on one leg
(photo courtesy of C. Pears)
[Lake Claremont, Perth, WA, June 2021]
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Food, Diet |
Like all other geese, ducks and swans, Black Swans are vegetarian. They feed on underwater plants.
Close-up lateral view of three Black Swans feeding on aquatic plants
(photo courtesy of J. Boettcher, FNQ Nature Tours)
[Forever Wild Shared Earth Reserve, Mareeba, QLD, October 2020]
Adult Black Swan harvesting underwater
(photo courtesy of R. Druce)
Mob of Black Swans feeding on a
fallow field
[Goran Lake, near Gunnedah, NSW, March 2023]
Black Swan cygnet being fed
(photo courtesy of R. Druce)
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Call(s)/Song |
For this species we have recorded the following call(s)/song. The
interpretation of their meaning is our own;
comments and suggestions for improvement are welcome.
blswan_20141010.mp3 | (NW NSW) | Warning call (human) | © MD | |
blswan_20161218_3.m4a | (NW NSW) | Concert (group) | © MD | |
blswan_20161218_2.m4a | (NW NSW) | ? | © MD |
More Black Swan sound recordings are available at
xeno-canto.org
.