Cygnets, Young Swans

The legs swans are normally a dark blackish grey colour, except for the two South American species, which have pink legs. Bill colour varies: the four subarctic species have black bills with varying amounts yellow, and all the others are patterned red and black, although most birds generally do not have teeth, swans are known to be an exception to this having small jagged 'teeth' as part their beaks used for catching and eating fish. The Mute Swan and Black-necked Swan have a lump at the base the bill on the upper mandible.
Distribution and movements
The swans are generally found in temperate environments, rarely occurring in the tropics. Four (or five) species occur in the Northern Hemisphere, one species is found in Australia and New Zealand and one species is distributed in southern South America. They are absent from tropical Asia, Central America, northern South America and the entirety Africa. One species, the Mute Swan, has been introduced to North America, Australia and New Zealand.