Swan Rescue South Wales

2571 is the number carried by a hospital ring applied to the leg of a beautiful adult male swan rescued from Rhoose Point, Vale of Glamorgan on Thursday 25^th. August. (See earlier report).  He had swallowed fishing line, and had become extremely lethargic; what we couldn’t know was whether or not he had also swallowed a hook, and if he had, whether or not the guilty fisherman had tried brute force to retrieve his tackle. Fully aware of the possible consequences if this had happened, we decided immediately an X-ray was essential. Next stop; the National Swan Sanctuary at Shepperton.

The X-ray investigation proved negative, but the swan remained very subdued for the next 24 hours. At this point he suddenly recovered, and seemed to remember he had left a ‘wife and four children’ back in South Wales – to use the words of his carer, he became an ‘utter beast’!

We brought him home on August 27^th. We’ve done this so many times over the years; we’ve come not to expect a joyful reunion, and so this one turned out, but within 24 hours, the family was back together again as a unit.

We were called again to Rhoose Point on the evening of 8^th. October, just as the light was fading – this time to deal with one of the cygnets which was trailing 10 m. of discarded fishing line. The bird was feeding well, so the line was cut free and the bird was released immediately. With the benefit of hindsight, maybe the cob was bit ‘off’ that evening, or maybe it was the perceived threat posed by the would be rescuer of the tackled cygnet.

To be on the safe side, we visited again on 10^th. The cob seemed a bit slow coming to food, but he did feed. There was a suggestion he might have been ‘gaping’ a bit. Our assessment is capture at that point would have been virtually impossible.

On the 13^th, a call from a local resident suggested the cob was indeed poorly – he was alone, and had moved to the more westerly lagoon. This was a day when we were involved with problems involving a fox attack at the Swansea Yacht Club, a cable strike at Marshfield on the Gwent Levels and concern about the health of a cygnet at Caldicot in Monmouthshire; in short we were unable to travel to Rhoose Point until the following day. In the event, and despite an extensive search of both the east and west lagoons, there was no sign of ‘our’ swan.

As we were preparing to leave – late afternoon – we had a call from some one who reported a swan which had been on the mud in Barry Old Harbour all day; a very precise description was given as to his  location. It was only a minor detour on our return to Newport. Again, despite an extensive search, we could find no sign of the swan. Just to be sure, we asked Steve, who lives just round the corner, to check again the following morning, Again, result negative.

Six days then passed; now it is 20^th. October. We received a call from another Steve who works for The Vale of Glamorgan Council. He had received a call from a member of the public reporting what she took to be a very sick swan at The Knap, which having been drained, starting on 3^rd. October, was almost completely empty. That morning was extremely busy, with two juvenile swans ‘down’ on the M4 between junctions 26 and 27, with the traffic chaos which would be expected. Anyway, we arrived at The Knap mid-morning. The sick bird was obvious; he was sitting alone in 6” of foul smelling water containing a mass of very fine particulate matter. He seemed to be having great difficulty breathing, and in so doing was making the most alarming noises; we’d never heard anything like it in thirty years. He wasn’t too difficult to catch; there was no mistaking which bird this was; he carried the hospital ring 2571 he’d been wearing since 25^th. August.

Uppermost in our minds was the fact that, in the first weeks of 2008, a total of 28 swans in this area had died from the results of a bacterial infection clostridium perfringens , and our concern was that history might be about to repeat itself.

We decided immediately our swan needed to be on a drip as quickly as possible, and this was best achieved by obtaining help from South West Swan Rescue in Swindon. The intention was, when the swan was strong enough, we would move him to the National Swan Sanctuary at Shepperton. The drive to Swindon was accompanied by the distressing sounds of the bird struggling for breath.

Even more distressing was the phone call we had on our way home from Swindon – less than an hour after setting out – to say the swan had died; 2571, our beautiful cob was no more. In the circumstances, we felt it essential a post mortem be carried out to establish, if at all possible, the cause of death. At the risk of damaging some of the evidence, we accepted Sue’s offer of freezing the body. At least, this took the pressure off, and so allowed us the space to make the best possible arrangements. Having been closely involved in the 2008 episode, we were so pleased Alex Barlow of AHVLA at Lower Langford, Somerset agreed once again to help out.

The body was delivered on Monday 31^st. October, and now we know what the truth is. The post mortem revealed a necrotic lesion in the trachea, the effect of which was to create a one way valve which, in turn, was making it increasingly impossible for the swan to breath; it was this which killed the swan. The contents of the gizzard were analysed; there was very little there, but significantly, there were small pieces of brass which were the remnants of an angling swivel.

The conclusion to be drawn from all of this is death was the direct result of an angling related incident in which a hook was ingested and became caught in the trachea. The damage so caused turned septic, and eventually surrounding tissues started to die off – turned necrotic. Knowing how quick this process is once it starts, it is extremely unlikely the 25^th. August episode was the turning point; it is much more likely to have been on a date from early October onwards.

This is a desperately sad story, especially as it seems clear,  that as a result of the loss of the male, the rest of the family dispersed – a few days later, the lagoon was occupied by two new adults and four other cygnets, and when we last visited on 28^th. October, there were no swans there at all.

And to end on an even sadder note, when our swan was release at Rhoose Point on 27^th. August, he weighed 11.4 kg; when we picked him up at the start of his final journey, he weighed only 8.35 kg. In the course of his suffering, he had lost over a quarter of his weight.

Had a call from Ellen. She was in a swan-related meeting at Margam, but a swan had been reported as injured at the Cardiff Bay Watersports Centre slipway, at Channel View in Cardiff. The Cardiff Bay Barrage people thought that it had a broken wing, and was in a bad way.

It took and hour or so before I could get there, and when I arrived there were a few adult swans and cygnets pottering in the rain at the water’s edge. It was also cold, grey, and piddling down with rain. I wondered which one it was before I spotted a bedraggled white bundle on the grass beside the slipway. When I approached, I thought the poor little bugger was dead, as it made no movement, but when I lifted it’s head the eyes were bright and there was still some life there. There was also no obvious sign of serious injury, although the feathers of the head and neck appeared saturated with water.

It put up no struggle as I wrapped it and put it in the car, and a couple of people nearby reported that it had been walking in the road “looking confused” for a few days.

Having arranged to meet Ellen and Peter at Cardiff West services, that’s where we ended up a little while later, and a couple of very helpful members of the services staff gave me some tissue to dry the swan and some bread to feed it. The swan had perked up a little in the relative warmth and shelter of the car, but when I tried to feed it some wet bread, there was a problem – head waving side to side violently, and difficulty swallowing. Closer examination of the head revealed a couple of minor-looking injuries at the front and back.

When Peter and Ellen arrived a few minutes later to take custody of the swan, the initial diagnosis was that the damage might have been caused by a territorial dispute, resulting in brain damage.

Had a call from Dewi, a resident at Rhoose Point this morning. A swan had been sitting in the middle of the fairway for a day or so, and apart from accepting bread, was not moving about. As there was a concern about the cause of death of a swan that was thought to have been the male (Cob) of the family group living on the pond, I went to have a look.

The swan was where it had been reported to be, and it didn’t try and move away as I walked past it – not usual behaviour! As I guessed that this swan wasn’t going anywhere (and as it actually behaving normally would have been good), I went to have a look at the swans on the lake.

It had been reported that the cob had disappeared a week or so ago, possibly visiting Barry Old Harbour and Barry Dock. A sick cob was removed from the Knap Lake in Barry a few days ago, but died during the journey to Shepperton Swan Sanctuary, and this was thought to have been the male of this family. So it was a bit surprising to discover TWO adult swans with the four remaining cygnets.

Having taken a few photographs, I turned my attention to the original swan. Again, it let me approach far too closely, so I decided that Peter and Ellen should be the ones to decide it’s immediate future. A simple hand between the wings was enough to pin it to the ground, and although it struggled slightly, it didn’t put up the sort of struggle that a healthy swan would.

A little later the swan had it’s face in a bowl of food at Ellen’s holding pen in Newport. A phone call from Peter later indicated that they weren’t happy with the swan, and it was a likely candidate for Shepperton tomorrow.

And so it goes on day after day, week after week and the calls keep coming. When the phone rings, particularly the mobile, it’s almost certainly to do with a swan in distress somewhere – Herefordshire, Gloucestershire, over the river Severn into Bristol or Avon but wherever it is, it’s almost a foregone conclusion it will involve discarded fishing tackle and some poor bird in need of help. And today, Sunday 16^th October 2011 was no exception. Thankfully, if there was anything to be thankful for, it was only down the road on our local canal, just off the next junction of the M4 and it was one of the cygnets of a family we know well. These two parent swans had a lot to be proud of, having successfully reared eight very handsome cygnets.

When we arrived we were told three ‘fishermen’ had been there earlier that day; they stayed only a short time and then left, but leaving behind them in the water two triple micro barbed hooks joined together with 6cms of coarse wire; one of the hooks had become firmly embedded in the tip of the lower bill of the cygnet we had been called to rescue. Separate from these was a plastic miniature pear-shaped float attached to roughly two metres of very heavy gauge fishing line which had managed to wrap itself around the cygnet and apparently, before we arrived, was also attached to the female swan so when she moved, it pulled the line attached to the hook in the cygnets beak forcing his head down under the water. Thankfully, due to both swans struggling, the adult swan had managed to free herself.

Quite a crowd had gathered and were watching helplessly as the baby struggled to free himself. There was only one course of action to take; as I distracted the attention of the other cygnets and the adults with pieces of bread Peter lowered himself into the water and carefully made his way across to the other side of the canal where the cygnet was. It was not easy because of the deep and very soft sediment on the bottom of the canal but he was soon close enough to grab the baby and struggle back to the bank but then he got stuck, he was unable to move because of the thick sediment and so he was grateful for the helping hand offered by one of the guys to haul him and the distraught cygnet up onto the bank. To do this, he too was in the canal up to his waist. The situation was made worse by the fact the fishing line had also become entangled with a mass of dense blanket weed which was weighing it down. At first we were concerned about how the adult swans would react to one of their babies being taken away. If this had happened five months ago when the cygnets were tiny then their attitude would have been very different but this time it was almost as if they understood Peter was trying to help. Eventually we disentangled him from all the line around his right wing, and tightly, several times around his left leg.

As we were leaving the canal bank, we were asked by a number of the by-standers if we would be bringing the bird back. We made it clear we wouldn’t be doing that; by not doing so we were effectively guaranteeing (as far as it is possible) a safe passage away from the nesting site, at a time when he would either be going anyway of his own accord, or the cob would be driving him away. The concept of a ‘safe passage’ is particularly relevant here because of the proximity of a stretch of the M4 motorway which is described as one of the busiest in the country.

In the meantime, as a result of his experience, it was clear this 10.5 kg juvenile was both traumatised and exhausted, so we took him into care. As it turned out, this was just for 24 hours, after which we released him into a local non-breeding flock.

Once cygnets start to take their first flights away from the nest site, it is normal for this to signal the start of a whole series of calls about cygnets in trouble – or even calling trouble!. And so it was, Thursday 30th September, and we had our second call – this time from Lamby Way to the east of Cardiff, but a very busy industrial road, which meant it took much longer to get to the rescue site than we would have liked. However, all was well; we took this 7.1 kg bird into care, and the piled up traffic dispersed quickly

First crash landed juvenile of the autumn picked up from Aberthaw Drive, Newport. Only damage was injured pride.

Thursday, 22nd. September; two calls from the bay regarding cygnet with plastic water bottle top stuck over its bill. By the time we arrived, a barrage authority boat was waiting for us. A gentle approach run by boat, followed by the usual supply of bait – bread – and the usual brutal finish with the swan hook, and the victim was caught. Within seconds the litter had been removed, and he was back with his family. 30 minutes later, the RSPCA appeared, in all their glory, only to be told, the job had already been completed …!

Took a call from David, a resident at Rhoose Point. He reported that one of the adult swans living on the small lake had fishing tackle around his neck. Although the swan was reported to be walking around the bank, by the time I arrived he was afloat again. A small amount of bread made the tackle hanging from his beak go further down the throat, but it seemed to come back a little by itself. The whole family (2 adults and 4 cygnets) were a little wary, so we adjourned to David’s living room to drink tea, in the hope that the swan would take another walk.

Half way through the cup, out came the swan, and back we went. David distracted (fed) the others, while I tried to get close enough to the male to grab him. Once he was safely pinned to the ground, I tentatively pulled the fishing line, but it was not about to fall out that easily! OK, another one for Peter and Ellen!

Half an hour later the swan was transferred to Peter, and later that day it was at the National Swan Sanctuary in Egham. An X-Ray revealed no hook or tackle inside the swan, but he remained there a day or so for observation, before being given a clean bill of health and being repatriated to Rhoose Point by Peter.

And it’s worth noting that while we were there initially, David found yet another piece of fishing tackle (including hook) carelessly discarded on the lakeside.

OK, Time to confess – I’m not really Ellen – but I’m logged in as her. She who must be obeyed. She who dragged me to Cardiff Bay on Friday the 13th May 2011. And why was I here? Because the previous day, Ellen and Peter, ably assisted by various large vessels belonging to the Cardiff Bay Port Authority and a couple of canoes from the nearby White Water Centre, had been led a merry song and dance by a swan that was wearing a piece of fishing tackle like a designer ear-ring.

And as I had missed this, Ellen felt that it was time I got involved with my Canoe. I wasn’t so sure!

Anyway, at 2pm I met Peter and Ellen just outside the Cardiff Bay Yacht Club gate, and we put my master plan into effect. This was to grovel unashamedly to the yacht club, in the hope that we could borrow one of their motorised safety boats. Peter was volunteered (by me!) to do the grovelling, and I offered to drive the boat. Unfortunately, there were insurance issues with this course of action, but as if by magic we were saved when one of Peter’s neighbours, who was in the club on his own business (but made the mistake of heckling us!) was volunteered to drive us around.

So Peter and I, with Vic driving, spent a few hours driving around Cardiff Bay looking for the “tackled” swan. Meanwhile, Ellen was enjoying the hospitality of Vic’s luxurious motor cruiser, complete with a warm comfy seat in the sun, reading materials, TV, tea and coffee making facilities… life is hard when you’re the boss! Meanwhile, us poor cannon fodder were pottering about looking for the swan, in the brilliant May sunshine, freezing our buns off in the strong wind blowing down from the North. Global warming my left buttock!

Actually, it was a rather pleasant way to spend a bright Friday afternoon. We examined the flock of swans in the river Ely – no luck. We went up-river towards the pumphouse, but no swan. There were a few in front of the clubhouse, but he (or she) wasn’t there either. Nor was it in the big flock at the mouth of the river Taff, or upstream from there.

And the few remaining “loners” in the main part of the bay seemed to be OK as well. There was a newly hatched family in the nature reserve area near the St David’s Hotel – two parents, and five cygnets about the size of small ducks.

By now the wind was freshening (that means it was getting stronger) and I was starting to get cold – not assisted by the occasional wave over the bows and into the face! Fortunately, Peter decided that we weren’t going to find it, and that, having used half a tank of the yacht clubs’ petrol, it was time to call it a day!

So we returned the boat to the club, and adjourned to Vic’s yacht where we enjoyed Swan Rescue Tea (made by the Boss) and chocolate Hob Nobs courtesy of Vic.

As for the swan – we guess that we haven’t heard the last of it, and maybe Ellen will get her wish of me having to flog around in my kayak trying to herd it. But if we can, I think I’ll suggest that we try to enlist the invaluable help of Cardiff Bay Yacht Club again.

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