The black swan, if that is indeed what it was, spent hours in the hayfield plucking up grasses. My husband spied it from the road and called me. "You need to come and take pictures of this weird-looking goose," he said.
We have flocks of geese. They stop for a visit as they migrate, leaving a mess of goose poop in the hay fields and down by the ponds.
But this was no long-necked goose, I realized when I drove by to see what I could see. I could only think that it must be a black swan.
Neither my husband nor I had ever seen a real living swan and certainly never a black one. Nor had we ever seen a picture of one out of the water. Swans are always in fairy book tales; they are almost an unreal creature, something of myth. They are birds that haul princesses away, carrying them across lakes.
Whatever this bird was, it was not native to our area.
Having a swan land in the hayfield was like being visited by a demigod. Wouldn't it be something if this bird and its mate, if it has one, has decided to call our farm home?
Did you know that some birds get tired in flight and just land to rest... although it is odd that this black swan landed there.
ReplyDeleteA couple of years ago a large hawk landed in the backyard of my daughter and her husband's home in Iowa. They thought it was hurt and got it to a bird rescuer who said it had no injuries and that sometimes they just get tired, land, and rest for a day.
How neat that your visitor was a 'black' swan!
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Wow, what a beautiful animal! And lucky you to have it land nearby. He looks even more dramatic against that white snow. I hope he sticks around...
ReplyDeleteThat's wild...I've never seen a black swan either, and the white ones had been in water. I wonder what this fellow looks like in flight. It would be cool if you get a shot of that!
ReplyDeleteA black swan seems very auspicious--a messenger of some sort? We will have to do some research and see if we can find its symbolism. Does it want to be included in your creative work? Certainly, like beautiful deep magic visiting your field--this black swan.
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