A bevy of swans, a gaggle of geese and a raft of ducks!
Our usual over-wintering mute swans have gathered at the small patch of open water at Wellington Harbour, and have been begging for handouts! During the summer, you can't get within a hundred yards of them on West Lake, but show up with some corn or peas (no bread, please!) and you can hand-feed them. They are joined by a male trumpeter swan ("Barcovan") who is equally tame. He's easily distinguishable with his "P85" yellow wing tags and black beak. When I was there in early February I was told that there were also some Ross' geese, which are apparently quite rare. They were hidden among the ubiquitous and noisy Canada Geese on the harbour ice.Click on any image to view/download a higher-resolution version. For non-profit use only; please respect our image copyright.
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© 2019, John A. Brebner/Friends of Sandbanks