I think I've mentioned this before, but I have a running battle with all the wild swans that live on my city's lake ('all' being about two families, but still...); if I wobble past them on my kayak dropping pieces of bread into the water then they love me, if the bread runs out they hate me, if I don't drop bread FAST enough they hate me, if I look at 'em the wrong way they hate me...
you get the pattern, I think.
There's a new one to add to the list: if I accidentally stumble upon the little under-bridge island they're using to hatch their little babies, then they REAAAALY hate me...
So that's the best on-water picture I've managed of any of these half-heart-shaped bastards (who, I say, have significantly less than half-a-heart...) and it nearly cost me my paddle: two seconds later this bastard was diving against the boat lunging for my friggin' nuts!
In his defense, I did stumble upon his nesting ground: he and his mate were sitting under dense brush, and there were dark down feathers ALL OVER the undergrowth (ie: a shedding baby, or two-dozen...)
Needless to say, I was paddling for my life for a good quarter-mile down the water: this daddy did't f**k around with me...
Upon seeing them later on I suppose that they only have one kid, or at least just one survivor from a larger feathered brood...
They're so pretty that I should love 'em, but for the moment I just love to hate 'em.
I've even already got the final chapter's 'closer art' assembled and ready to go, so there...
