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Hoy avisté menos cisnes de los que calculaste.

Hoy avisté menos cisnes de los que calculaste.
Today I sighted fewer swans than you calculated.
From Lesson 279:Clausal comparatives with nouns (del que, de la que)·Spanish (Latin America)

Questions & Answers about Hoy avisté menos cisnes de los que calculaste.

Why does the sentence use de los que instead of just que for 'than'?
When you compare a noun (here, cisnes) to an action with a conjugated verb (here, calculaste), you cannot just use que. You need a phrase that agrees with the noun being compared. Since cisnes is masculine and plural, we use de los que.
Could I use the neutral de lo que here instead?
Not in this exact sentence. We use the neutral de lo que when comparing an adjective, an adverb, or a general idea to a clause. Because this sentence compares the quantity of a specific noun (cisnes), the phrase has to match that noun's gender and number: de los que.
Why is it menos and not a plural form, since cisnes is plural?
The word menos (less/fewer) never changes its form when used to compare things. Whether you are talking about masculine, feminine, singular, or plural nouns, it always stays exactly as menos. The agreement happens entirely in the de los que part of the sentence.
What verb is avisté from, and how is it different from vi?
It comes from the verb avistar, which means to sight, spot, or catch sight of something from afar. While you could simply say vi (I saw), avisté is the perfect vocabulary choice for spotting wildlife, like swans.

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