Swan is a large waterfowl. The neck is equal to or longer than the body; The mouth shape is moderate, the base height is flat at the front end, and the mouth nail is located in the middle of the mouth end, but it does not occupy all of the mouth end; Adult eyes are exposed first; The nose is oval and located near the base of the mouth; 1 The length of the primary flight feather is about half that of the secondary flight feather, almost equal to that of the tertiary flight feather, and it is the longest flight feather. The tail is short and slightly round, with 20 ~ 24 tail feathers, and the tarsometatarsal is short and thick, located at the back of the body, and the front edge of the tarsometatarsal is covered with reticular scales; Strong toes. There is a membrane on the back toe. Gay, or slightly lighter women (such as black swan). Young birds are mostly brown.

Swan is a winter migratory bird, which likes to live in lakes and swamps and mainly feeds on aquatic plants. In China, they fly from the south to the north in large groups every March and April, and spawn and breed in the northern frontier provinces of China. The female swan lays 2 or 3 eggs every May, and then the female goose hatches the eggs, and the male goose guards them and never leaves. After June 5438+ 10, they will go south in droves. Overwintering and recuperating in the warmer south.

The breeding season mainly inhabits open lakes, ponds, swamps, slow-flowing rivers and adjacent tundra lowlands and tundra swamps. In winter, it mainly inhabits large lakes, reservoirs, ponds and river bends with aquatic plants such as reeds and cattails, and also appears in wet grasslands and flooded plains, swamps, beaches and estuaries, and sometimes even in farmland Yuan Ye. More than 20 birds form a small group, arranged in the word "one" or "person", singing while flying. It moves south in mid-September every year and often moves north from June to August.

Extended data

Take China as an example, swans mainly breed in the north and west of China, and overwinter in central China and the southeast coast. Every swan keeps a rare "lifelong companion system". When wintering in the south, foraging and rest are paired. When the female swan lays eggs, the male swan watches. When it is hurt by the enemy, it flaps its wings to meet the enemy and bravely fights with the other side. They not only help each other during the breeding season, but also pair up at ordinary times. If one of them dies, the other can really "spend the holidays" and live alone for a lifetime.

Japan is one of the wintering places for swans. There are about 20 ancient names of swans in Japanese. Some of them, such as "Red" and "Siniperca chuatsi", were introduced from China, some were the names of the areas where swans lived, some were onomatopoeic words of swan songs, and some were descriptions of the shapes of swans. There are many stories about swans in Japan. They are regarded as the messengers of heaven and "divine birds".

There were many descriptions of swans in ancient Greece. Aristotle's Fauna discusses the habits and behaviors of swans, and records the morphological anatomy of swans. The story of a Greek bird has a touching description of the swan's dying song, which is the origin of the name "swan song" in western culture.

Baidu Encyclopedia-Swan (Birds)