This gallery is proof that every now and then, mankind does inadvertantly do positive things for the environment. Every winter a section of the Mississippi River just downstream of the Monticello nuclear power plant remains unfrozen due to it's warm water discharge. This has become a major attraction to the state's ever increasing Trumpeter Swan population. Swans that used to migrate south have now chosen to overwinter at this location. The result is that now somewhere between 500 and 1000 swans congregate here every winter. It is really an amazing (and noisy) place to be. Flying, courting, fighting, eating...there are so many activities all going on at once that it's actually difficult to figure out where to point your lens! The images here are the result of my attempts to photograph this mayhem. I'm planning on many return visits!