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there's a lonely swan in a pond and i want to help it

a_j216
05/09/2020 16:33

hi all,

i live in gravesend in kent.

at my local pond there is a single swan in there, it looks really lonely and i cannot help but feel the need to help it. i fed it some kibbles to try and keep the little guy healthy, and stayed with him for abit.

not far away, maybe 40 metres away, are the rest of the swans, 20+ of them, at the river thames.

i have tried to entice the lonely swan to come to me and i lure it back to the thames with food so it can rejoin its friends but it looks uncertain and about leaving the pond. theres no clear way for him to get out with its little legs its got. but i do remember other swans who are so eager to come to me, even walking up to me, once followed me from the pond all the way to the thames, and there i threw the food in the river so it swims for it and joins its friends.

not this poor little one.

here's a pic of the swan at the moment. i want to help it and feel helpless, i dont know what to do?

i emailed my local council but they never respond. what else can i do? shall i contact RSPB? the swans been alone all by itself for a few days now.

thanks

  • 0 11/10/2020 02:04
    hi all,
    thought i give some further updates, and some questions...

    the two swans are still in the lakes and they seem lively - by that, i mean when i visit they see me and swim quickly to me, looking at me the whole time. it makes me smile because i come to love and care about them. i feed them kibbles and not bread. the other swans on the thames are doing ok though i noticed the numbers have lessened as it is getting colder - in the summer there would be nearly 30 but now there's about half. i wonder if they should be somewhere hibernating? what about those in the pond? how will they survive when it really starts to get cold and snow hits?

    also, as well as swans i also monitor the ducks. i love the little duckies. at the thames i saw a large family it looks like, about 12 in total. but today, i noticed that 10 of them were at the pond where the 2 swans are - again, my question is, is this normal? can they fly from there to the thames if needed, which is about 30 metres away? why have they gone to a pond thats a smaller area?

    when feeding the ducks today i saw this aggressive looking man on the bridge, looks like he was fishing and when he caught this large fish he just left it on the bridge where he was standing and the poor fish was suffocating it looks like. i felt so sorry for it i wanted to throw it back in the sea but was worried he might assault me. i am concerned he may harm the ducks and swans, maybe perhaps taking one of them with him as food. is there anything i can do here? what do i do if i come across someone harming, taking away or even killing the ducks or swans? unfortunately i'm not strong enough to stop them so like some other advice and input on what to do
  • 0 11/10/2020 08:16
    Birds follow their instincts. When swans and ducks are fed regularly by humans they then associate humans with food (whether it's suitable for them or not), so it is normal that they swim towards people when they see them. They are looking at you as they expect you to provide food.

    Birds don't hibernate like some mammals do, but they do migrate to places where there is less harsh weather and suitable and plentiful food. We currently have thousands of swans and geese arriving on the Northumberland coast from northern Scandinavia and the Arctic circle to escape the harsh winter weather.

    Some of your local swans have obviously flown off, probably to somewhere where there is a more suitable food source. The ones left will be fine in the colder weather, although some of the less healthy birds may succumb to really cold weather when we get into winter. Also, they could easily manage a 30 metre flight, these birds could fly thousands of miles if necessary. They have probably moved to the pond as the natural food source there is better. All of the behaviour you describe is absolutely normal.

    As for the man fishing, i assume he's entitled to fish there. Fishing is a normal and legal hobby. You should try not to worry, there is absolutely no reason to suspect he, or anyone else, may harm the ducks and swans. That sort of thing is thankfully very rare, not least because birds can fly away and would be difficult to catch, however If you see anyone attempting to catch or harm the birds you should not interfere, but call the police and let them deal with it.