Black swans steal surfing spotlight on Australia's Gold Coast

Dolphins are the most likely critters to invade a surfing lineup and steal the spotlight.

But on Friday at Kirra, on Australia's Gold Coast, four back swans made a rare appearance in the surf and became an instant hit when they began to catch and ride waves. (Video posted below.)

"We've seen Mick Fanning and Kelly Slater, but not four black swans," Kelvin Mills, a Kirra local, says in the News 9 video, referring to iconic pro surfers who are in Hawaii vying for the world title.

Mills had never seen black swans in Kirra, let alone surfing swans.

And what makes the footage so unusual is that the birds were not merely swept up unsuspectingly by waves; they were actually riding the surf, seemingly for fun.

The first swan in the clip catches a wave to shore, oblivious to the human onlookers. It then paddles back out, using flight to get over the oncoming waves, instead of duck-diving beneath the waves as surfers do.

The three other swans then drop in at once and ride the "party wave" together.

Ultimately, they fly off, presumably to find a better break.

Comments

[bruce]

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_TmkDp13pd74/R4laW-ZAxtI/AAAAAAAAD5U/gWSsEHu4SoU/s1600/december-2007-cover-copyrig.jpg

check this one from dunedin nz.

phoam.blogspot.co.nz

[Kel Mills]

Thank you for enjoying My video of the swans that I gave to channel 9, maybe I should have sold it if I knew how to. I new it was special and it would go viral. There are bits and pieces on the news and 1.08min section that channel 9 has sent to the world. If you want to see the unedited video, search Kel Mills surfing swans. I live at Kirra and it was an experience I will never forget. Enjoy........