Just two months old, the two (out of five) cygnets are almost the size of their parents. One of them was attacked by a snapping turtle in early July. It lost a toe and all of the webbing on one foot, but the wounds have healed now (right). It will learn to compensate for its diminished paddling power but it is having some difficulties now. Their adult feathers are beginning to grow and their bills have a tint of orange which will intensify as the weeks go by. Both parents still travel with them on excursions around the pond. The family usually returns to the northern end near their original nest after the sun goes down.
[...] his royal family? In a way, I hope it isn’t. They started with five cygnets last June, but only two survived. One of those lost a toe and all webbing on its right foot to (what was probably) a turtle bite. [...]