Maali on the Derbarl Yerrigan

Freo Today. 19 February 2026. While down at the Derbarl Yerrigan/Swan River yesterday at Niergarup/East Fremantle, near the Swan Yacht Club, two maali/black swans glided in to say hello. Aren’t they graceful birds? But how is it they came to be black rather than white, like swans found elsewhere in the world? If you’d like to hear the Whadjuk Noongar story about how the maali came to be black, here’s Whadjuk Elder Neville Collard relating the story.