“Fair is the Swan, whose majesty prevailing
O’er breezeless water, on Locarno’s lake,
Bears him on, while, proudly sailing,
He leaves behind a moon-illumined wake:
Behold! the mantling spirit of reserve
Fashions his neck into a goodly curve—
An arch thrown back between luxuriant wings
Of whitest garniture, like fir-tree boughs.
To which, on some unruffled morning, clings
A flaky weight of winter’s purest snows!
Behold! as with a gushing impulse heaves
That snowy prow, and softly cleaves
The mirror of the crystal flood;
Vanish inverted hill, and shadowy wood,
And pendent rocks, where’er in gliding state
Winds the mute creature, without visible mate
Or rival, save the queen of night,
Showering down a silver light
From heaven upon her chosen favourite!”
Wordsworth.
The two best known species of this elegantly-formed and majestic bird are commonly known as the Wild and the Tame, or the Whooping and Mute, Swans. They may easily be recognised by the peculiarities of the bill: the Tame Swan has the bill orange-coloured, with its base black, and surmounted by a black knob; the Wild Swan has no knob, and it is the tip instead of the base of the bill that is black.
THE WILD SWAN, WHOOPING SWAN, OR WHISTLING SWAN, (Cygnus ferus,)
Is also a fine bird, with beautifully white plumage; unlike the Tame Swan, which is nearly mute, it has a loud and rather melodious voice, which it utters frequently, as it flies along at a great height in the air, during its migrations. It is found in England in the winter, but resides all the year in the north of Scotland. Its favourite place for breeding is in the extreme north. The Tame Swan is the largest of our web-footed water-fowl, sometimes weighing about thirty pounds: the whole body of the full-grown Swan is covered with a beautiful pure white plumage, but the young ones are grey; under the feathers is a thick, soft down, which is of very great use, and often employed as an ornament. The elegance of form which this bird displays, when, with his arched neck and half-displayed wings, he sails along the crystal surface of a tranquil stream, which reflects, as he passes, the snowy beauty of his dress, is worthy of admiration. Thomson describes the Swan in the following beautiful manner:
“—— —— —— The stately sailing Swan
Gives out his snowy plumage to the gale,
And arching proud his neck, with oary feet,
Bears forward fierce, and guards his osier isle,
Protective of his young.”