Rescuing baby black swans - Western Australia

Hi everyone, I hope you and yours are doing well. 

Here in the south west of Western Australia it has been baby black swan rescue time again. 

This is something I only heard about in February. Every year the Geographe Bay Wildlife Rescue in Busselton, in the south west of Western Australia, rescue black swan cygnets that have been abandoned by their parents, feeding and raising them, and then returning them to waterways, including the Leschenault Estuary near where I live. 

Why is this necessary? The below information is from an article from ABC.net - ABC.net-Hundreds of cygnets found stranded at sea

An increasingly dry climate is forcing adult birds to abandon their young in search of a better food source, leaving flocks of baby swans, known as cygnets, to fend for themselves.

When cygnets are abandoned by their parents, they often migrate away from wetlands in search of water, finding themselves in the ocean and unable to fly against strong winds or swim against currents.

It is up to volunteers, in collaboration with wildlife organisation Geo Bay Wildlife Rescue, to head out to sea and scoop them up, with the team being called out on a daily basis.

In early February volunteer, Mr Fish says they had rescued 200 so far this year, with last season seeing 400 cygnets rescued.

Incredibly, when we went down to the beach to watch the Australia Day fireworks, near the outlet from the Leschenault Estuary into Koombana Bay in Bunbury, in the fading light we saw a group of swans swimming on the ocean. We couldn't see them clearly but we couldn't understand why they were there. It was only a few days later that we saw an interview on our TV news about the cygnet rescue program. Evidently this has been happening for nearly 60 years. This group of cygnets was evidently lost. I now wonder what happened to them. There is no feed for them along the ocean coast. 

A few weeks later we heard that fledged cygnets were being released into the Leschenault Estuary so we went around to  try and see them. We could see swans far out in the middle of the estuary but then a flock of them took off near the bank, where we hadn't seen them, when we stopped our car. Some stayed around, I think these little guys weren't fully fledged yet to fly. 

Here are some photos. 

With thanks to the Geo Bay Wildlife Rescue and similar organisations, it was beautiful to see these black swans living free in their natural environment. 

To find out more, and how you can help them continue the wonderful work they do, not only with black swans but also other wild animals, go to -  

Geo Bay Wildlife Rescue on Facebook

Here is a video so you can learn more -

A few facts for you -

The black swans scientific name, Cygnus atratus, means 'a swan attired in black.'

The Noongar name for the black swan in Western Australia is Maali (also spelled Mali or Marlee)  

Other Indigenous names across Australia include Koltjak, Barayamal (Gamilaraay), Kunuwara (Yartwatjali/Tjapwurrung/Djadjawurrung), and Kaylarunya in Tasmania

Story from Aboriginal Dreamtime. ''The black swan was once white. Long ago all swans were white. They boasted of how beautiful they were until the eagle became angry and attacked the swans. In the process the swans lost most of their feathers and cried they were cold. Crow took pity on the swans, removing feathers from his own back to cover the swans. The feathers became implanted however some white feathers remain to forever remind swan that he was once white''

Black swans are found throughout most of Australia, particularly in the southwest and southeast regions, inhabiting wetlands, lakes, rivers, and estuaries. They are most common in areas with permanent water and aquatic vegetation. 

The Swan River in Western Australia's capital city Perth, was named in 1697 by Dutch explorer Willem de Vlamingh who called it Swarte Swaene-Revier (Swan River) due to the abundance of black swans he encountered. The area was known to the Noongar people as Derbarl Yerrigan, and the city of Perth was founded along the river in 1829.

The official state bird emblem of Western Australia is the black swan. It features on our state flag. 

This photo below I took of a nesting pair in the middle of a Perth park a couple of years ago. The mother hustled the cygnets under her wings and I think that's the father floating nearby. 

I hope you have enjoyed this post about black swans. 

More information at: Australian Museum - black swans

Geo Bay Wildlife Rescue on Facebook

Thank you so much for stopping by. I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 
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Finding the Spoonbills along the Leschenault Estuary, Western Australia

 Hi everyone, I hope you and yours are doing well. We have had a quick, windy and wet start to winter after 6-7 months with no rain. So I am definitely not complaining. However in the city near to us there has been a lot of damage to houses and trees from a couple of wild storms and a tornado. We luckily have been safe. 

A couple of weeks ago I shared with you a walk along the Collie River near where we live. You can click on the link if you missed it. The Collie River flows into the Leschenault Estuary beyond which lies the Indian Ocean. Last week we took a drive to the other side of the Estuary and went for a walk. It was an overcast but calm day. 

We were amazed to see a flock of Yellow-billed Spoonbills - Platalea flavipes - in some dead trees on the edge of the water. 

We had never seen them before like this, and we lucky to be able to get close enough to take some photos. I don't have a long birding lens, so I was very happy with the pics I was able to get. 

You could almost imagine the conversations these spoonbills were having with each other. 

Yackity yak - I really love this shot. The bird on the left looks like he is being nagged by the bird on the right! I wonder if they are a pair? LOL 

The Yellow-billed Spoonbill is nomadic and is found across Australia in suitable habitat, particularly in the north and well-watered inland areas, but is less common in coastal regions. The Yellow-billed Spoonbill is found in the shallows of freshwater wetlands, dams, lagoons and swamps, and sometimes in dry pastures, but rarely uses saltwater wetlands. It can use much smaller areas of water than the Royal Spoonbill.

The Yellow-billed Spoonbill feeds on aquatic insects and their larvae, using its bill to sweep shallow waters for prey. The spatulate bill has many vibration detectors, called papillae, on the inside of the spoon, which means the bird can feel for prey items even in murky water and can feed by day or night. Once food is caught, it lifts its bill up and lets the items slide down its throat.     Yellow-billed Spoonbill - from Birds in Backyards

The spoonbills have a global distribution, being found on every continent except Antarctica. The genus name Platalea derives from Ancient Greek and means "broad", referring to the distinctive shape of the bill. Six species are recognised, which although usually placed in a single genus have sometimes been split into three genera.   Wikipedia-Spoonbill

Below is a photo of a Royal Spoonbill taken by my husband, which we saw at a waterway near Winton in Queensland last year. Its black face, bill and legs all distinguish the Royal Spoonbill from the slightly larger Yellow-billed Spoonbill, which has a yellow bill and legs.    Royal Spoonbill - Platalea regia - Birds in Backyards

We also saw Black Swans - Cygnus atratus - foraging in the reeds and grasses.

Black Swans are found throughout Australia with the exception of Cape York Peninsula, and are more common in the south. Black Swans prefer larger salt, brackish or fresh waterways and permanent wetlands, requiring 40 m or more of clear water to take off. Outside the breeding season, Black Swans travel quite large distances. Birds fly at night and rest during the day with other swans. The Black Swan is a vegetarian. Food consists of algae and weeds, which the bird obtains by plunging its long neck into water up to 1 m deep. Occasionally birds will graze on land, but they are clumsy walkers.- Black swans - from Birds in Back Yards

We also saw Cormorants - possibly the Pied Cormorant -Phalacrocorax varius  In Western Australian they are commonly called shags. Not the best photo, they were a bit far away, and no they weren't standing on the water - in the photos further below which I took several years ago, you can see the posts from the old jetty they were standing on. 

The Pied Cormorant is found throughout mainland Australia. It is more common in the south and along the coast of south-western Australia and is not found in the driest parts of the interior. It is also found in New Zealand. The Pied Cormorant is found in marine habitats (almost exclusively so in Western Australia), including estuaries, harbours and bays. It is also found in mangroves and on large inland wetlands in eastern Australia.    Phalacrocorax-varius from Birds in Backyards

We also saw kangaroos - these would be the Western Grey Kangaroos. I think the one on the left is the daddy. The little one is having a good scratch. They were obviously quite used to people. 

There is a 1.8km loop trail at Belvidere. When we first came to Bunbury 50 years ago there was a humpy camp here. And of course it was a camping place for indigenous people for thousands of years before that. Now you can camp with your tent, caravan or camper trailer in the marked areas. However the mosquitoes are very friendly - so make sure you bring repellent. There are 4-wheel-drive tracks over to the beach. 

For more information on Australian birds - Birds in Backyards.net and Birdlife Australia.org

Or search in All About Birds.org

Thank you so much for stopping by. Do you like photographing birds. I would do more if I had a better longer camera lens. 

I value your comments and look forward to hearing from you. I will try to visit your blogs in return. Have a wonderful week. 
I am linking up to the link-ups below. Please click on the links to see fabulous contributions from around the world - virtual touring at its best!
   

Mosaic Monday @ Soul & Mind & So On

Saturdays Critters - Viewing Nature With Eileen

Inspire Me Monday

Travel Tuesday

Pictorial Tuesday 

Talking About It Tuesdays @ Slices of Life

ThroughMy Lens 
Image-in-ing
My corner of the world through my camera 
Wednesday Around the World at Communal Global hosted by Randomosity. 
       and Little bird - Pienilintu
Thankful Thursday 
Welcome to Nature Thursday

Skywatch Friday

Hello there! I love reading your comments. If you scroll down to the bottom you can comment too! I would love to hear from you.

Until then, enjoy your day... it won't be back.