This is the first time I’ve seen the cygnets this year, although I can’t be sure they weren’t out before today. At any rate, I got to watch the whole process of mama swan nudging them away from the comfort of the nest and coaxing them down to the water for their swimming and foraging lesson. We always brace for the likelihood that a fraction of the young survive. Perhaps a batch of three will be easier to keep watch over than some of the larger batches we have seen in past years.