Talk:Black Swan

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There is also this image (which I prefer)
There is also this image (which I prefer)

Contents

[edit] Black Swan Theory

Shouldn't this page make some mention of Black Swan theory, or the old philosophical argument that said all swan's are white and a black swan is an impossible thing. Something about all that?

--Pollard666 (talk) 00:30, 17 November 2007 (UTC)

[edit] earlier conversations

Hi, I spotted a Black Swan in a flooded gravel pit in Northampton UK this afternoon (28 May 2006). It was with a white swan. I guess it had escaped from captivity and paired up with one of the locals!

Hello, has there been many sightings of these in the USA? I'm sure I saw one last night on the Arkansas River.

  • They are sighted in the US, but are not established. Instead any Black Swans seen here are escapees from collections (like zoos and ornamental gardens). Sabine's Sunbird 18:31, 1 August 2005 (UTC)

So if these birds are spotted in the U.S. should anything special be done?RbbrDuckmn 17:18, 12 September 2005 (UTC)

There are lots of species in the US that are escapees. I don't think there is any thing that is required to be done, although it never hurts to inform the local Humane Society. They might be able to catch them and rehome them (or return them to the original owners, as many zoo birds will be banded).Alternatively call your local birding organisation, who will either do something about it or send hundered of birders to list it. Sabine's Sunbird 02:19, 13 September 2005 (UTC)

Two Black Swans have that arrived in Southlake, TX on 3/17/2006, in the Dallas/Fort Worth area. We have a pond/lake surrounded by 11 homes in Southridge Lakes subdivision. The birds have been photographed and remain thru today 3/19/06.

We had an escapee float down to our property. As our community is small, we soon found the owners. He had been kicked out of their pond by his up-and-coming son. Since he stayed at our creek, we looked around and bought him a wife. They are happily cruising up and down their new territory (southeast PA), are very people-oriented and a great pleasure to have around.Juggins 14:30, 30 July 2007 (UTC)

[edit] None, none more black

The two Southern Hemisphere swans, the Black Swan of Australia and the Black-necked Swan of South America are different from the all-white Northern Hemisphere swans for having black coloration plumages.

To me this reads like "Black swans are different to white swans, as they're black, not white". It'd be better to say "Black swans are only found natively in Australia" or modify the quote from the 'swan' page: "The Northern Hemisphere species of swan have pure white plumage, but the Southern Hemisphere species are patterned with black. The Australian Black Swan (Cygnus atratus) is completely black except for the white flight feathers on its wings, and the South American Black-necked Swan has a black neck. The Coscoroba Swan, also from southern South America, has black tips to the primary feathers."

[edit] Black Swan sighting NJ

I saw what I thought was a black swan in a pond near my home in Vernon, NJ. Everyone I told said no way. I googled black swan, and was surprised to discover their native home is Australia, and they are rare here. I went back today, saw the bird again and now have photographic proof. Laura, Vernon, NJ

They often escape from captivity, jimfbleak 06:43, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

There is a black swan that swims with three white swans in and around Lavallette, NJ as well. I have several pictures to document it. lhow.one@verizon.net July 6, 2007.

[edit] History of discovery

I read that when the black swan was first seen in Australia and reported back in England, the majority of the population claimed that it was a fib. Can anyone verify/source this, and if worthwhile mention it in the article i guess?

[edit] Black Swans in Norfolk Broads

I am adding to the sighting list. I saw a pair at the Norfolk Broads in Norfolk county in the UK. My photo can be seen here.

- Mayuresh 19:03, 27 December 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Minor edit

Changed "Both sexes are similar" to "The sexes are similar." (How can only one sex be similar?)

Kostaki mou 00:47, 13 January 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Black Swan lifestyle

Recently, an anon user 71.196.140.140 added some article about Black Swan homosexuality, that reached almost a "quarter" of their total population. The source of this "nonsense" is Livescience website [1], and after reading some of their articles, is totally questionable. There's no confirmed source or anything about the information (personal view ??) posted on their site. Anybody has more knowledge about the website or the swan' lifestyle ? --Stavenn 02:30, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

    • The website in question is kind of lite but many of the articles seem no worse than you'd find on many local news channel websites. There doesn't seem to be much in the way of references on the site though. The amounts seem high for sure (though that didn't stop MSNBC from quoting them! Lets see what we can find about this in other sources. Sabine's Sunbird talk 02:56, 24 January 2007 (UTC)

I believe you're talking about the (CURRENTLY) 6th paragraph, which includes the sentence "According to the Web site "LiveScience", same-sex couples make up to 20 percent of all Black Swan pairings each year, and approximately 25 percent of all Black Swan pairs are of the same sex, and may live together for years". I've read this sentence about 10 times and I still can't decipher it. So, same-sex pairs make "up to" 20% of the population, and at the same time make up around 25% of the population.210.8.150.249 07:05, 14 March 2007 (UTC)

The two different percentages make perfect sense when you factor in the swans that are not paired up. Up to 20% of the entire population, but 25% of the paired population, which is a subset of the entire population. Myk 14:01, 15 May 2007 (UTC) 13:56, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

Also, I'm going to check out my local library for more info about that fact, and hopefully bring in an extra (printed) source.210.8.150.249 07:05, 14 March 2007 (UTC) (Perth, Western Australia)

The information is from the University of Oslo Natural History Museum in Norway, which is currently holding an exhibition called Against Nature? about animals exhibiting homosexuality. The wikipedia entry for the exhibition includes a link to the exhibition website, which in turn has a references page, all of which appear to be university publications of scientific studies, and presumably the source of the data for the exhibition. The information in the 6th paragraph could perhaps be more clearly expressed. I am tidying up the natural history section of the Black Swan page, and any feedback as this proceeds would be great.Thungarra 10:37, 10 May 2007 (UTC)

I have been in touch with Natural History Museum in Oslo, and completely rewritten this section, with source materials referenced. Thungarra 04:51, 15 May 2007 (UTC) Black swans like to have homosexaul relationships..... —Preceding unsigned comment added by 68.89.202.118 (talk) 16:48, 22 January 2008 (UTC)

[edit] Dhufish

This word appears in the text. Is it a typo? jimfbleak 05:32, 15 May 2007 (UTC)

[edit] Slow-burn editwar

I've noticed a certain amount of reversing of edits regarding a link to a book in the ab message at the top of the page. Perhaps it would be best to discuss it here rather than continue and risk some 3Rness. As far as the arguments go, there are several instances that I've noticed where a single common derived term is linked in addition to the mani dab page (by derived I mean that all the various dab meanings are derived from the original meaning, in this case the Australian bird). I'm not sure that the book is a candidate in these circumstances, especially as it is itself a derived term from the theory of the same names (surely a better candidate if there is to be one).

Another thing, when id this article get so completely overfilled with cultural sections? It's a mess! Sabine's Sunbird talk 23:18, 20 June 2007 (UTC)

I have now created a new page called Black Swan emblems and popular culture, and have transferred all of the 'cultural references', which were listed on the Black Swan page, to the new page — I have also added a 'See also' section on the Black Swan page, with a link to the new page. (This is similar to the Kangaroo emblems and popular culture page, to which there is a link from the 'See also' section of the Kangaroo page). Figaro 15:41, 21 June 2007 (UTC)
Re: the direct dab link. A search for "Black Swan" on Google has the book listed first and this article second. With the book currently #21 on the Amazon best seller list, it seems appropriate to provide a direct dab link to it so that people searching for the book, a currently common activity, can go directly to that article rather than going first to the dab page, reading down to the book link, and then clicking the link. Since this feature is used on other articles, seems reasonable to do it here. Regards, Rillian 15:34, 24 June 2007 (UTC)
  • blatant SPAM POV advertisement for book is a little strong don't you think, Figaro? I don't think the book will have much lasting impact but it is fairly famous at the minute. Sabine's Sunbird talk 21:22, 24 June 2007 (UTC)
This is supposed to be an encyclopedia page about the bird, and the continued reversion of the disambiguation section at the top of the page, to give a special and significant mention of the book, can be said to be covered by both of the descriptions used. The book is mentioned on the disambiguation page, where it part of a short listing — surely people are brainy enough to be able to find the link to the page about the book (from the disambiguation page) without too much difficulty (without the extra need for special guidance and assistance to get there). Figaro 21:41, 24 June 2007 (UTC)

[edit]  ?!

Could someone tell me just what the hell a swan is?My help is needed 22:14, 24 June 2007 (UTC)

If your question is intended as a serious one, then check out the page for Swan for the answer to your query. Figaro 22:45, 24 June 2007 (UTC)