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I have been prompted to create this page by the 2001 debate over the status of the nesting Mute Swans in Vancouver's Stanley Park. The intent of this page is to present a comparison of three sites where I have some knowledge of breeding Mute Swans. In some areas my information is incomplete - I hope to obtain more information, but please note that I maintain this site in my spare time. Information from others, comments, corrections, opinions, etc. are welcome by e-mail to mark at mtwphoto.com. This information is now presented "as-is" - it has not been updated since 2002.
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 This is perhaps the most famous city park in Canada, located in the heart of Vancouver, British Columbia. "1" on the map indicates the territory of the most dominant pair of swans, 2 the next and 3 the lowest pair. Only pair number 3 hatched any cygnets in 2001. The "+" signs indicate nest sites. "X" marks the site where most unofficial feeding takes place (well within the territory of the dominant pair). The successful pair in 1999 were the dominant (number 1) pair. In 2000 it was pair number 2. In 1999 and 2000 pair number 3 did not exist. The number 3 pen is the (1999) daughter of pair number 1. Visit the Stanley Park Ecology Society web site. |
 This site is a a city park in the heart of the British capital. "A" on the map marks where the nesting pair were photographed (in the Long Water). The Round Pond ("B" on the map) is where the non-breeding swans are to be found. The nesting pair will, at a time of their choosing, move their family to the Round Pond. |
 This site is a small Nature Reserve on the busy South Coast of England. "A" on the map marks where the nesting pair were photographed. "B" indicates where other Swans (mostly 1 and 2 year old) were photographed. The pale blue area indicates the salt water of the Solent - an area popular for sailing, surfing and swimming. Visit The Haven web site. |
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For adult swans the only real threats in any of the locations come from human activity. This includes off-leash dogs - though swans can easily drown a dog if the encounter is in the water. For Stanley Park the threats during egg incubation come from humans, raccoons, dogs and the occasional mink or otter. For the 2 UK locations the threats come from humans (less so than Vancouver and even less for the Haven), foxes and possibly other sources (I have limited knowledge of these). For the young cygnets the threats are similar to those during incubation, plus attacks by crows, large gulls (many more of these in Vancouver than the UK) and herons. There is a Great Blue Heron colony in Stanley Park, so there are many herons about - a good thing for the park as they are generally in decline. There are fewer herons (the closely related Grey Heron) at the UK sites. An additional threat comes from other swans - this may have been the cause of at least two cygnet deaths in Stanley Park for 2001. Free-flying swans would never nest as close as the pinioned pairs do in Vancouver. In the two UK sites the nesting pair ensure other adults are kept out of their territory.
The two city sites may seem similar but they differ in several ways of fundamental importance to the breading success of the swans. By far the most important is the availability of a safe, secluded nest site. The London park has many areas adjacent to the Serpentine (water) that are fenced off from public access, Stanley Park has none. There is an island in the Stanley Park Lost Lagoon site, but it can be accessed by humans (with some difficulty), and is prone to predator attack - the swans have lost all eggs when attempting to nest there. The Stanley Park site is also large enough only for one breeding territory, but contains 9 adult swans. Since the birds have all been pinioned it is impossible for the breeding pair to drive out other swans - deaths have occurred. The site is also smaller than the London one. Both sites are subject to large numbers of human visitors. The other UK site - The Haven - lives up to its name. The breeding pair have a totally natural and protected (from humans) area in which to breed. Non-breeding swans (adult and juvenile) are found in an adjacent area (in large numbers), but are kept outside the breeding territory (by the parents).
As already mentioned, the Vancouver swans have all been pinioned. So what is pinioning and how does it differ from "clipping"? Clipping a bird's wings involves cutting the flight feathers to prevent the bird from flying for a single season - until new flight feathers have grown in. Pinioning, on the other hand cuts the wing bone itself (at the human equivalent of the lower arm). Pinioned birds can never fly. Both activities should be carried out only by experienced wildlife personnel and only when absolutely required. So when is pinioning required? Generally the reason is to prevent non-native birds escaping into the local environment, where they may be a threat to indigenous species. The threat is not usually from predation, but from displacement. Starlings are a good example of a species that has displaced many native species around the world. Mute Swans are native to the UK, they are not native to North America. In many North American jurisdictions there are laws requiring pinioning of non-native birds. This is why the Stanley Park birds are pinioned. It is an unfortunate accident of history that these decedents of European Mute Swans are thus not allowed to spread across the New World in the same manner as the humans who brought their (swan) ancestors with them to remind them of home (along with the house sparrows, starlings, etc.). The fact that there are several populations of feral Mute Swans in the surrounding area causes many people to believe they are native or that we are simply "barring the barn door after the horse has bolted".
This has been a very brief comparison of the three sites. One of the great joys of (human) visitors to any city park is to feel close to Nature. Typically we do this by feeding the wildlife. In small amounts this can be good for both parties. Unfortunately the sheer number of humans doing so in a city park causes an unnatural dependency. For some reason these effects seems to be far worse in Vancouver than in London. Feeding wild creatures is done out of kindness and particularly helps children discover the wild world. Unfortunately it also makes that world a little less wild. With thoughtful consideration of human and bird "nature" we should be able to achieve a more natural balance in Stanley Park. For those of us fortunate to have seen Mute Swans in a truly natural setting, such as the Haven, we should take joy in the sight and sound of swans flying overhead. We should also take mental note to protect such species and those that may have less charisma (to human perceptions). We can only do that by protecting their habitat.
