A Juvenile Swan

There was a bird at the Josey Ranch Lake (Carrollton TX) that was between an ‘ugly duckling’ and a beautiful swan. On shore the bird looked as large as the adult swans.

Both parents kept watch as the juvenile took to the water with the ducks.

On a longer swim on the lake, one of the parents kept close while the other stayed further away on watch. 

The big excitement of the outing we witnessed was the juvenile chasing a duck - almost running over the other bird. Afterwards, the duck bobbed about looking stunned while the young swan made a lazy loop around the fountain in the center of the lake as if nothing had happened.

Then the young swan followed the parent at a sedate pace and distance to the far end of the lake for a snack of lake greens. It was easier to see that the young bird was somewhat smaller than the adult…but not much.