The Bronx Zoo recently welcomed three new additions and shared an adorable photograph of the black-necked swans cygnets. Interesting fact: When they are small, they ride on the backs of their parents for "warmth, transportation, and protection from predators."
The Wildlife Conservation Society explains, "Carrying cygnets is most pronounced in black-necked and mute swans, but all true swans are known to do this behavior. Swans have several adaptations that accommodate their omnivorous diet, including a long neck and serrated bill which allow it to forage on submerged vegetation... One characteristic of black-necked swans is that they are the most aquatic of any swan and are often found in marine areas. Their legs are located farther back on the swan’s body to accommodate this more aquatic existence, and hence, make them very ungainly on land."
They are native to South America, and the black-necked swans are one of four species at the Bronx Zoo—there's also trumpeter swans, whooper swans, and coscoroba swans. You can see water fowl at the Zoo's Heart Lake, on the western side of the zoo between the Southern Blvd. entrance and the Birds of Prey exhibit.
Previously in Winged Animal Week: we talked to City Birder Rob Jett about urban birdwatching, and visited Brooklyn's backyard chicken coops.
