My Entry to the Feathered Friends - Show Me A Photo Contest Round 254 - Free Theme

I was just taking a photo of this swan preening when it suddenly rose up to stretch its wings, so I had to take the shot quickly. It's not quite sharp, but I did my best. Sadly, only three of the swans' six cygnets survived. It had just got to the point that the adult swans were encouraging their family to fly the nest when one cygnet was found dead and another very poorly. Originally, it was suspected they had avian flu which is in the area. The poorly cygnet was taken to a local animal sanctuary but didn't make it. Both cygnets had wounds on their body. There are lots of dog walkers in the park but I suspect the cygnets have been attacked by foxes. The remaining cygnet is on a neighbouring pond.

This is my entry to the Feathered Friends - Show Me A Photo #SMaP Contest Round 254 - Free theme.

There was a group of tufted ducks, male and female on the village lido. They're not here all the time but are becoming frequent visitors. They stick around for a while and then they move on.

The female mallard was just chilling on one leg. Their plumage is quite underrated, I think.

Thank you to @nelinoeva and the #featheredfriends team for running the contest.