Swans have to keep their feathers in a neat and tidy condition at all times, to do this they do something called preening. Preening is where they use their bills to spread an oil throughout their feathers which helps to keep them waterproof. This oil is produced in a gland that lies at the base of their tails.

The swans neck contains between 23-25 vertebrate which gives it its long neck. The neck is spit inside into 2 sides; the right side is where the food travels down while the left side is where air travels down to a swan’s lungs. The feathers on their necks are some of the smallest feathers that you will find on a swan’s body. 

The barbs and the barbules shown within the image are what enable the feathers to keep neat and tight. Any feathers that aren’t hooked can cause problems when they try to fly. The barbs and barbules make up the major surface area of a swan’s feather. The feather that was used to take this shot was a coverts feather which are small contour feathers from the wings and tails. 

Swans eyes are located on the sides of their head which is well suited for spotting and identifying predators and other dangers. It does however lead to poor forward sight. A swan’s eye has something called nictitating membrane which is a transparent eyelid that protects their eyes when their heads go under the water, this enables them to feed easily under water. Without this membrane their vision would be blurry when underwater. 

Male and Female swans appear very similar in appearance they can be distinguished by the black knob on the beak which is visibly bigger on the males than it is on the females. This knob will swell during the breeding season making it even more prominent on the males. 

The wingspan of a swan ranges from 208 to 238 cm, making it one of the UKs largest birds. The wing feathers are long stiff and symmetrically shaped and vary in length to give the wing its shape. The sound most associated with a mute swan is that sound that is caused by their wings in flight which is unique to the species. This sound can be heard up to a mile away. 

When it perceives a threat, a swan will rear up with its head back with dramatically flared wings and hiss, grunt, snort and flap. This display is called "busking". But this aggression is normally only for show. This behaviour occurs most when the males are protecting territory or a nest. It also happens during the breeding seasons to scare of other males that may try to compete with them. 

Across a swan’s body there are 10 different types of feather. There are contour feathers, coverts, remiges, retrices, down feathers and 5 specialised feathers, each have a different structures purpose. The feathers that can be seen within the image are contour feathers which are the predominant feathers that cover a swan’s body. Swans have over 25,000 feathers. 

A swan’s foot consists of 4 toes, 3 at the edge of the foot and one at the base of the leg, these toes have claws which can be used to scratch. The foot contains a complex network of blood vessels that allows the swan to regulate its body temperature. The feet are webbed which allows for easier movement through the water and also helps them to walk on land.