Garden Visitors

[cuthound]

Just had these guests visit us.

Edited February 6 by cuthound
To add more photos

[GUMPY]

I would get rid of them asap and stop them coming back unless of course you want the bank covered in excrement.

Nasty creatures but not quite as bad as Canada geese.

[cuthound]

1 hour ago, GUMPY said:

I would get rid of them asap and stop them coming back unless of course you want the bank covered in excrement.

Nasty creatures but not quite as bad as Canada geese.

 

Since we lost Zeus, my rescue GSD we already get quite a bit of duck excrement.

[Rob-M]

Be careful they don't decide to build a nest in your garden and become territorial.

[GUMPY]

A wire on pegs along the waters edge of the mooring about 6 inches above the slabs will prevent them.

Where we moored I was the only one  that bothered to rig this when I went away, I was also the only one that came back to a clean mooring.

[Alway Swilby]

Be careful that they don't break your arm!

[booke23]

What an absolutely beautiful garden, looks idyllic. 

[frangar]

Our resident pair have learnt to knock at the door for food!...and the boat if they know we are on it.....How anyone wouldn't want them to visit is beyond me....they are brilliant characters and have been known to stop traffic in the village if they fancy a wander....would be more than happy if they decide to nest in our garden

 

 

[cuthound]

2 hours ago, Rob-M said:

Be careful they don't decide to build a nest in your garden and become territorial.

 

They have nested at the nearest marina for the last few years. I guess they like the attention. However soon after  the cygnets are hatched and able to swim, the parents take them on a trip on the cut, presumably to point out the houses which will feed them.

 

[frangar]

5 minutes ago, cuthound said:

 

They have nested at the nearest marina for the last few years. I guess they like the attention. However soon after  the cygnets are hatched and able to swim, the parents take them on a trip on the cut, presumably to point out the houses which will feed them.

 

Our pair nest in the reeds on the offside a few hundred up the cut but do patrol their pound on a regular basis.....and indeed know where to go for food...outside the pub is a popular choice but if they spot us leaving they then follow us home....we have had a bit of a territorial dispute which needed swan rescue to help with....and we have helped trace the movements via the leg rings...really interesting stuff.

[Jerra]

4 hours ago, frangar said:

Our pair nest in the reeds on the offside a few hundred up the cut but do patrol their pound on a regular basis.....and indeed know where to go for food...outside the pub is a popular choice but if they spot us leaving they then follow us home....we have had a bit of a territorial dispute which needed swan rescue to help with....and we have helped trace the movements via the leg rings...really interesting stuff.

I would urge anybody who sees a swan (or any bird for that matter) with a "darvic" ring (a plastic ring with readable letters or numbers) to record it and report it.

 

If you find a dead bird with a metal ring or one comes in the house and you catch it record the details and report it.

 

Such citizen science is aiding greatly in knowledge of birds where they go and what they do.

[frangar]

6 hours ago, Jerra said:

I would urge anybody who sees a swan (or any bird for that matter) with a "darvic" ring (a plastic ring with readable letters or numbers) to record it and report it.

 

If you find a dead bird with a metal ring or one comes in the house and you catch it record the details and report it.

 

Such citizen science is aiding greatly in knowledge of birds where they go and what they do.

The Darvic rings are easier to read with a swan but they seem to be quite good at removing them!  One of the resident swans has one and the other doesn’t. We did have a visiting single swan arrive when the cut was frozen which had a metal ring and even tho we were able to get very close they are hard to read….poor thing was very hungry and a bit confused as to how it had just landed badly on the ice. But after a couple of days of food and a bit of thawing it was able to take off on its own.
 

It did spot the resident pair and was wary but the ice  helped to keep them apart. The other single swan that visited had a Darvic tag and via swan rescue we were told she’s been after this patch for a while. The resident pair are not having any of that which resulted in a scene reminiscent of “Hot Fuzz” down the main road and swan rescue coming to take the single swan back to her home territory….its quite a thing to be keeping some irate swans separated. 
 

Thankfully we don’t seem to have any poorly birds here yet although I know they have in Worcester….but the rescue say they hope the worst has passed and although sadly some swans did die the others that were poorly are now improving. 

[blackrose]

17 hours ago, GUMPY said:

I would get rid of them asap and stop them coming back unless of course you want the bank covered in excrement.

Nasty creatures but not quite as bad as Canada geese.

 

Swans are ok but I wish people would stop feeding them. They're supposed to be wild animals. I remember when I was moored at Windsor in summer. Tourists were thick on the ground and the water was thick with bread with hundreds of overfed swans everywhere.

 

I'm not sure what it is about humans that can't leave wild animals alone. I've seen Youtube videos of people who call themselves "animal lovers" feeding foxes in their gardens. What they're actually doing of course is domesticating wild animals - I guess it's a human need.

[frangar]

4 minutes ago, blackrose said:

 

Swans are ok but I wish people would stop feeding them. They're supposed to be wild animals. I remember when I was moored at Windsor in summer. Tourists were thick on the ground and the water was thick with bread with hundreds of overfed swans everywhere.

 

I'm not sure what it is about humans that can't leave wild animals alone. I've seen Youtube videos of people who call themselves "animal lovers" feeding foxes in their gardens. What they're actually doing of course is domesticating wild animals - I guess it's a human need.

Sadly the fact is that thanks to man’s intervention natural food sources for all wildlife are not as plentiful as they once were. Granted bread is not ideal and indeed if left can cause illness via mould etc. but we use grains and “swan food” which is essentially grains that float. The swan feeding project at Worcester also teaches the pubic how to correctly offer food to the waterfowl there. 
 

A recent RSPB study showed that even when food was put out for garden birds they still foraged for around 50% of food and if the supplied food was stopped they quickly found alternatives. I have no issue with food being left for foxes/hedgehogs etc. it’s quite possible to enjoy their company without becoming physically close especially in this age of covert cameras etc.  

[Jerra]

5 hours ago, frangar said:

The Darvic rings are easier to read with a swan but they seem to be quite good at removing them!  One of the resident swans has one and the other doesn’t.

Does the other swan have a metal ring?  If not it never had a Darvic ring.  All swans that are rung may not have a Darvic the dravics are used for a particular study if a ringer is following one e.g. where they move to.

5 hours ago, frangar said:

We did have a visiting single swan arrive when the cut was frozen which had a metal ring and even tho we were able to get very close they are hard to read….poor thing was very hungry and a bit confused as to how it had just landed badly on the ice. But after a couple of days of food and a bit of thawing it was able to take off on its own.

Metal rings basically you need the bird in the hand or dead.  It is sometimes possible to work out what they say from photographs.

5 hours ago, frangar said:

It did spot the resident pair and was wary but the ice  helped to keep them apart. The other single swan that visited had a Darvic tag and via swan rescue we were told she’s been after this patch for a while.

Reporting any rung bird will usually get you a reply from the ringer giving you details of when and where rung age etc.

 

For anyone interested this page is useful.

 

https://www.bto.org/our-science/projects/bird-ringing-scheme/about-ringing/why-report-ringed-bird#:~:text=If you do find a,including Turkish%2C Lithuanian and Catalan.

5 hours ago, frangar said:

The resident pair are not having any of that which resulted in a scene reminiscent of “Hot Fuzz” down the main road and swan rescue coming to take the single swan back to her home territory….its quite a thing to be keeping some irate swans separated. 

They aren't terribly friendly to others of their kind, to say the least!

5 hours ago, frangar said:

Thankfully we don’t seem to have any poorly birds here yet although I know they have in Worcester….but the rescue say they hope the worst has passed and although sadly some swans did die the others that were poorly are now improving. 

This bird flu is a massive threat, seabird colonies have suffered badly because they are so close together and not terribly hygienic.

[frangar]

5 hours ago, Jerra said:

Does the other swan have a metal ring?  If not it never had a Darvic ring.  All swans that are rung may not have a Darvic the dravics are used for a particular study if a ringer is following one e.g. where they move to.

Metal rings basically you need the bird in the hand or dead.  It is sometimes possible to work out what they say from photographs.

Reporting any rung bird will usually get you a reply from the ringer giving you details of when and where rung age etc.

 

The other resident swan doesnt have any rings....the one with the Darvic ring does keep trying to get it off tho!

 

The visiting swan we had almost let me read its metal tag as it was sitting on the ice having food...but then tucked its leg under itself and I didn't want to cause it any distress.

 

The people that had ringed the various swans were very happy to receive updates and could give us quite a bit of interesting info.

[Jerra]

12 minutes ago, frangar said:

The other resident swan doesnt have any rings....the one with the Darvic ring does keep trying to get it off tho!

 

The visiting swan we had almost let me read its metal tag as it was sitting on the ice having food...but then tucked its leg under itself and I didn't want to cause it any distress.

 

The people that had ringed the various swans were very happy to receive updates and could give us quite a bit of interesting info.

The assistance of the public in reporting rings either Darvic or metal on captured/dead birds is the main way of gathering information on where birds go, pause to rest, search for food over etc.

 

Ringers will always be very pleased to get such information.

 

I reported a swan and cygnets off the canal once and the reply was "oh good we had lost her she is usually at x, that's nowhere near her usual range".

[Jen-in-Wellies]

On 07/02/2025 at 18:02, Jerra said:

The assistance of the public in reporting rings either Darvic or metal on captured/dead birds is the main way of gathering information on where birds go, pause to rest, search for food over etc.

 

Ringers will always be very pleased to get such information.

 

I reported a swan and cygnets off the canal once and the reply was "oh good we had lost her she is usually at x, that's nowhere near her usual range".

I always assumed they were the price tags. 😀

[Momac]

On 06/02/2025 at 18:38, Alway Swilby said:

Be careful that they don't break your arm!

Is there any known case of swan breaking a human arm?

Maybe some people may have fallen over and broken their arm when they hit the ground  after being attacked by a swan.

 

 

[IanD]

16 minutes ago, Momac said:

Is there any known case of swan breaking a human arm?

Maybe some people may have fallen over and broken their arm when they hit the ground  after being attacked by a swan.

 

Simple answer -- no, there isn't.

 

The second one may well be true, probably outnumbered 1000:1 by tripping over uneven paving though... 😉

Edited February 9 by IanD

[Jerra]

39 minutes ago, Momac said:

Is there any known case of swan breaking a human arm?

Maybe some people may have fallen over and broken their arm when they hit the ground  after being attacked by a swan.

 

 

I know a man who rings swans by luring them into reach with food and then grabbing them by the neck.  If swans could break arms he would have a season ticket to the A&E ward.

[Creaking Gate]

Everyone happy to have them in their gardens until they need to do something, and then the council ecologist says you cannot touch them, suddenly everyone is a swan expert. Call me cynical... 

[Athy]

Nothing that a 12 bore wouldn't cure.

 

Recent visitors to our garden include chaffinches, tits both great and blue, and a goldfinch. I love birds, but for swans I'll ake an exception.

[frangar]

45 minutes ago, Athy said:

Nothing that a 12 bore wouldn't cure.

 

Recent visitors to our garden include chaffinches, tits both great and blue, and a goldfinch. I love birds, but for swans I'll ake an exception.

Why? What harm do they cause you?  I could say more but no doubt a mod would take exception 

[GUMPY]

Swans and Canada Geese are in the same league as Shytalks.

It was a great day when a Falcon snatched the Shytalks young from the nest on next doors roof.

No more being dive-bombed when stepping out of the house.