Although the Black Swan is found in wetlands throughout Australia, this graceful bird has had a special association with Western Australia from the earliest times. Aboriginal lore tells how ancestors of the Nyungar people, the indigenous Australians living in the south west of the State, were once Black Swans who became men. This graceful, elegant bird is the official Bird Emblem of Western Australia.
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The Black Swan is common in the wetlands of south western and eastern Australia and adjacent coastal islands. In the south west the range ecompasses an area between North West Cape, Cape Leeuwin and Eucla; while in the east it covers are large region bounded by the Atherton Tableland, the Eyre Peninsula and Tasmania, with the Murray Darling Basin supporting very large populations of Black Swans. It is uncommon in central and northern Australia.
The Black Swan’s preferred habitat extends across fresh, brackish and salt water lakes, swamps and rivers with underwater and emergent vegetation for food and nesting materials. Permanent wetlands are preferred, including ornamental lakes, but Black Swans can also be found in flooded pastures and tidal mudflats, and occasionally on the open sea near islands or the shore.
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You have many places to choose from to see black swans but why not take the chance to see them in Western Australia, where they reign as the state emblem? Take a break from your business trip or sightseeing to relax and watch the black swans in the city of Perth! You can get to Australia using airline miles.
LEARN MORE ABOUT THIS BIRD
Government of Western Australia
VIDEO
Black Swans in Perth