Veronica and I were working on our boat a few weeks ago at the marina. We have a single mute swan that comes to visit and to see if we have any food. If we don’t, the swan usually swims over and hisses at us. This particular day was no different. We try to remember to bring food but not today.
Our friend, Al, was washing his boat a few slips away and I watched the swam swim over and start drinking the water that was coming off his deck. I started to think about why the swan would want the water from the hose when he was swimming in an endless supply of water. The answer was obvious – the water that the swam was swimming in was brackish to salt water, depending on the tide, and the water from the hose was fresh water. Duh!!!
I asked Al to hold off with the hose for a minute until I got my camera. When I was ready, Al took the nozzle off the end of the hose and let it stream over the side. He sure made that swan happy. For the next five minutes, the swan drank its fill and then swam away.
Of course before he left, he swam over to the boat again looking for food. We got our usual hiss and he was gone. What a great moment.
To see more photos of the swan drinking water, visit the mute swan section of my photo gallery here.
© 2009, Herb Segars. All rights reserved.
