Graceful Geese and Swans

     Each species of life on Earth is well adapted to its habitat for survival.  We can see how it fits perfectly into its niche.  Flying birds are efficient and graceful on the wing.  And of all the birds I see flying in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania, the large and related Canada geese and tundra swans are the most stately, thrilling birders and non-birders alike.  Both those species of birds power swiftly and noisily across the sky in large V's and long lines, then set their out-stretched wings to swirl majestically into the wind and elegantly parachute down, group after group, like a feathered waterfall, with never a collision among their fellows, to fields to eat waste corn kernels and the green blades of winter rye, or to built impoundments to rest, preen their feathers and socialize.  And just before landing on the ground or water, the geese and swans extend their legs and back pedal their powerful wings magnificently for a gentle landing.   They are so wonderfully built for what they do that we have to believe they were created by a divine creator, as all life is.  Life on Earth is better than a wonderful work of art.     
     Interestingly, I sometimes see Canada geese and tundra swans mixed together in the same stately, inspiring V's and lines pushing quickly across the sky, often just above the tree tops.  Individuals of both species are about the same size and shape, land on the same impoundments and feed in the same fields.  No wonder, then, they sometimes travel together to feeding fields and human-made lakes.
     Many of the Canada geese and all the tundra swans are migrants here in Lancaster County from about the middle of February to mid-March.  Those migrants will nest in Canada, the swans on the tundra along the Arctic Ocean.  Some of the Canadas, however, hatched in the local area and will raise young here as well.  But all individuals of both species are magnificent on the ground and water, and particularly in the air.  They are beauty and majesty beyond belief, perfectly adapted for flight.  All of nature is beautifully designed by an all-powerful creator.