Sweetness and Light

Isn't this about the sweetest thing you have ever seen? Not. What looks like a hugfest is actually the beginning of a little sibling rivalry. Wrestling with their necks helps them position themselves for a good nip. Have you ever been bitten by a goose? I have. Actually, it is more like a bad pinch. It weally weally hurts. I have done my best to avoid it ever since. 

Notice the parent seems to be refereeing the match as they jockey for position. Swans lay from three to eight eggs during the nesting season. Of the one hundred or so swans I saw this day, no family units had more than two cygnets that I saw. Adults are monogamous, but they do not mate until they are three to five years old.

Arguments usually draw a crowd much as a fight breaking out among humans might cause people to stop and watch.

After a while, one emerges as the winner with the other crying "Uncle."

The victor announces it's prowess to all who would listen. But it may as well be talking to the wing because, if you notice, no one is listening.