We often think of swans as large, serene birds. A recent visit to LaSalle Park in Burlington Ontario confirmed that aggressive swans are alive and well… and busy defending their territory and mates.

NOTE: Click on images to enlarge.

Many of us think of swans as large, majestic birds. Often they appear slow moving and docile.

Their long necks can form graceful curves, enhancing the birds’ sometimes regal demeanor.

During mating season, or when defending their young, swans can be quite territorial and aggressive.

Aggressive swans often single out other birds and make a commotion as they chase them across the surface of the water. Most of these altercations only last a few seconds. At times aggressive swans have been known to fight, inflicting serious injuries, or worse,  on other birds.

This aggressive swan behaviour can erupt without any notice. As one bird charges another you’ll hear loud splashes as their wings beat against the surface of the water.

I did manage to capture one short continuous auto-focus image run of this aggressive swan behaviour. The next 9 consecutive photographs were captured in a total of 1/2 second.

Technical Note:
Photographs were captured handheld using camera gear as noted in the EXIF data. All images were produced from RAW files using my standard process. Photographs are displayed as 100% captures without any cropping.

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