Tundra Swans Take Off

Tundra Swans continue to return to South Carolina’s Bear Island Wildlife Management Area each winter. We photographed them this year for the first time since 2020 and were fortunate to go on day that was in the low 70s (21C).

Many of the Swans were towards the middle of Mary’s House Pond giving us a decent view as they moved around.

All that flapping and splashing gives a good audio cue that take off is about to happen.

This duo got further and further apart as they lifted off.

Repeating myself from a 2018 post, these swans can weigh up to 23 pounds (10 Kilos) so getting into the air takes a huge effort and considerable runway distance.