The white swan (Cygnus olor) or mute swan reaches sexual maturity at the age of three. Nesting in the spring at the water's edge, females have clutches of five to ten eggs per year. The young of the swan are called cygnets and are precocial as they leave the nest soon after hatching. They then follow their parents on the water and are often seen on lakes and other bodies of water where they start feeding. The cygnets first take flight after four or five months but stay with their parents for a year.