Swans appear in pairs on our river. No matter what the time of the year, they float around together and often synchronise their movements, although there two decided to see what was available in food on the bed of the river.

I read that their partnership remains for years, breeding families annually.

No matter how big the cygnets are, they stay with mum and dad for quite a while, at least the first year of their life, until the ugly ducklings became beautiful swans and they stay on our river. Often you find them swimming with dad or mum at the front and the partner at the back. The River Aare is a long river reaching from the lower Aare glacier in the Bernese Highlands of Switzerland and eventually flowing into the Rhine near Koblenz in Switzerland, so they have plenty of space to swim along.

Mum and dad stay with their babies until they are ready for a life of their own. The partnership of swans is a long term association and if one dies the other mourns its passing and often remains alone for the remainder of its life.

RDP Sunday Fill-in: Partner