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I have now split this into several pages - I will add about one page per month depending on developments. This page will contain a brief summary of the current status, together with a brief history of the past few nesting seasons.
The photo at the top of this page was taken (by me) near The Haven Nature Reserve, Titchfield, Hampshire, England. As you can see it has a full set of (unpinioned) flight feathers. You will not see such flight feathers in the Vancouver Mute Swans - pinioning is a legal requirement for non-native birds held in captivity in Canada - a forlorn attempt to prevent escape into the wild (there are many well established feral populations in Canada).
In 2001 there were 3 nesting pairs, which I labelled A, B and C. Only pair C (a new pair) hatched any cygnets (4). Only one survived. There is a long and dramatic story about last year's cygnets, which I do not have time to tell here, but you may want to see some photos - see 2001 Cygnets. If you want the story from another perspective, check out this page on another site - The Mute Swans of Lost Lagoon, Spring 2001.
In 2002 the A and B pair remain intact, but the C pair have split. The A and B pairs have been established for some years now, both having raised young in previous years. In fact the pen (female) from last year's (2001) "C" pair was hatched to the "A" pair in 1999. In 2002 she has started nest building with her brother at the old nest site for their parents (pair A) - I have called them pair "D". Her mate from last year is now courting the only other female - the daughter of the "B" pair from 2000. I have tentatively called this pair "E". The newly introduced pair (could be siblings) I have called pair "F" - however they show no signs of nest building. They continue to be confined to a small area where they were chased to by pair B (soon after their arrival). There are four other swans on the lagoon - all believed to be male, including one very old one introduced this March.
1998 - When I first moved to Vancouver in the early 90's there had not been any cygnets hatched to the Lost Lagoon swans for many years. It was not until 1998 that cygnets were once again seen. That year a pair of swans hatched 3 cygnets late in the season (after loosing their first eggs). Two of them sickened and died (parasitic infection). The third, weakened by illness was killed by an off-leash dog in the autumn of that year. Since then both parent birds have died - one to human action and one to other swans. The fact that swans may kill other swans shocks some people ("such beautiful creatures don't do that"), but it is a natural occurrence. It is made more likely, however, when the birds are kept in an unnatural density. In the wild the dominant pair would chase all other birds from their territory during nesting season. Lost Lagoon is only really large enough to support one nesting pair. Outside nesting season it would be sufficient for dozens of swans. Unfortunately they cannot move away - they have been pinioned and hence cannot fly. Pinioning is a legal requirement for non-native birds held in captivity in Canada. The intent being to prevent non-native species escaping into the wild where they may displace native species.
1999 - By this time both the current "A" and "B" pair were well established. In fact the official Parks Board line was that they were too old to have young. Well, the "A" pair proved them wrong by hatching three cygnets, of which two are still alive and well in 2002. They nested in the same site as later years (see 2001 on map above) - within several metres anyway. That year the pen (female) was attacked on the nest by a raccoon - she nearly lost an eye. She is now the easiest swan to recognise - by the scar over one eye. Her mate - called "Precious" by one of the park regulars - is by far the most dominant swan on the lagoon. His temperament may well have helped him and his mate raise two cygnets to adulthood. The two surviving cygnets were "banded" with black tiewraps around one leg. Both were identified by the Parks Board as male. As it turns out one was male and one female - the female has the band on her right leg, the male on his left. The female cygnet proved herself to be such in 2001 when she hatched four cygnets of her own (as part of the "C" pair).
2000 - Well, now many people were coming to expect cygnets each year. They were not disappointed in 2000. This time it was the "B" pair that kept some eggs and managed to hatch two. They delighted many people by riding on their mother's back. The family was confined to a relatively small area at "their" end of the Lagoon - chased there by the "A" pair. One of the cygnets has survived to maturity - currently (2002) being courted by one of the old male swans. Presumably she is a female swan!
2001 - The crazy year! Someone at the Vancouver Sun (local newspaper) decided that watching cygnets hatch and grow would be a "feel good" story for the Summer. As a result there were many more people "swan watching" that year. As the swans have a very poor choice of nest sites, they (almost) always end up nesting right next to the (human) paths. Thus we had the bizarre situation of news crews (all the local TV stations got in on the act too) having cameras kicked by people who thought they were too close to the nest. Well we were all too close - the temporary fence around the nest was less than a metre from it! Both the A and B pairs laid eggs close to where they had the year before - six or seven each. A new pair was established - an older male and the two-year old daughter of the A pair - forming "C" pair, who also produced six (or seven) eggs. As the incubation period (over a month) progressed all but "C" pair lost all their eggs. They finally hatched the last four, one of which was christened "Ivory" by some people. She was so named because she is a "Polish" Mute Swan - a genetic variation with pink feet and white plumage (cygnets are normally downy grey, then brown feathers until mature). Unfortunately the pen insisted on taking her young across the Lagoon to be fed by people. That area being in the territory of the A pair, they were frequently attacked. Two of the cygnets were killed within weeks - by their own "grandfather" - made for some juicy reporting in the "Sun". A third cygnet also died, cause unknown, no body found. The survivor - Ivory - was removed by Parks officials to the "safety" of the children's farmyard - where she remains to this day. Many people feel it would have been better to "let nature take its course". In September there was an attempt to return the young swan to the Lagoon - she was attacked by the other swans and had to be "rescued". Reportedly a weak bird - lopsided from poor pinioning - her future remains uncertain.
2002 - At the start of the year there were nine swans on the lagoon - the A, B and C pairs plus two unattached males and a young female. Then just as the swans were at their most territorial, the Parks Board introduce three other swans. Surely this must earn them (another) nomination for "Canada's Dumbest Park Managers". Of the three newcomers one is an old cob (male) and was chased across a road by the "A" cob. The other two are confined to a small area at the edge of the B territory. This is where we came in... keep watching the monthly links from this page...