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© Sedgwick County Zoo, credit: Jim Marlett

Black Swan

Cygnus atratus

Physical Characteristics

  • These swans have dark body plumage with white distal secondaries and primary feathers on the wings. Bill is orange-red with a white band near the tip. Eyes are bright red.
  • Size of average adult
    • weight: up to 20 pounds

Diet

  • Wild: aquatic vegetation

Behavior

  • Feed at dusk
  • Least territorial of swan species
  • Non-migratory
  • Nest in colonies
  • Reproduction
    • clutch size: 5 - 6 greenish-white eggs
    • incubation: 29 - 36 days
    • male initiates nest construction, but both male and female incubate and raise the young, cygnets remain with parents for one year

Environmental/Global

  • Habitat: areas around lakes and rivers
  • Distribution: Australia and New Zealand
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