I've hung out with swans heaps in Australia and they've been almost entirely chill bros who will take food if offered but won't harass you for it. I wonder if different species have different demeanours, like how Canada geese are known for being especially aggressive.

That's because the Germans have enough sense and morals to leave them alone :)

In my experience it's more of a specifically British phobia.

They are calm... by German standards.

i have to wonder if americans uh, get them confused with geese.. Because geese can absolutely have a tendency to actively harass you, while swans don't get close enough to interact with us in the first place.

Unless american swans are just suffering from lead poisoning like the general population?

Don't know, I've seen swans being total assholes in Finland, in Estonia, in Czechia, so maybe in Germany around Baltic shore they are also not seen as calm

There are a lot of animals that are seen completely not how they are, based on vibes, like wise owls, or cunning snakes, etc