Swan behaviour

[Matheous-2]

Please help! I have a goal in photography - to capture a swan in flight.
I am in central Scotland and would like to know if swans fly south for the winter & WHEN???

[sallybb]

find a local wildfowl sanctuary, there are several all over the UK. The one we visit is at Slimbridge, they have set feeding times for the migrating swans. Contact the nearest one to you and enquire if they do the same. You should be able to get several good pictures hopefully with multiple swans in :o)

[heathfield]

NOW! ;-) Last year they arrived ealier than usual, a supposed sign of a bad winter to follow. Sure enough, it was bad. This year, despite all the gloomy predictions about another bad winter, they've arrived later than usual, a supposed sign of a mild winter to come. We'll just have to wait and see who's right - the swans or the doom-merchants.

[notasyoungasiwas]

Well it's been mild so far - middle of November and the sun's cracking the flags here !

[heathfield]

This could be the calm before the storm...or not!

[notasyoungasiwas]

Swans on the river by me stay all year round, so can't use them to gauge weather. They are a sight to behold in flight though.
I like cold crisp frosty days heathfield, but not snow and ice like we've had for the last two years.

[rsvp]

have just walked past a field with over 50 swans feeding - they stay here all year.

[Matheous-2]

Thanks for your responses guys.....The swans here are pretty well fed and have nests in a small island in the middle of the loch.....I just wish I knew if there was a particular time of day when they might consider flight....

[rsvp]

'our swans' usually fly in earlyish morning and then out again before dark - although I have seen them flying at other times but there are hundreds in my area so I suppose that's not unusual.

[Matheous-2]

Thanks RSVP -that's a real help....I like early mornings!