Swans are protected in this country and are owned by the Queen of England, therefore affording them the honour of royal protection!
(Don't forget to click the images for the full screen effect!)
'The Crown claimed ownership of all the mute swans in England and Wales in the 12th Century, primarily to stop commoners depriving the royals of a favourite banqueting dish.'
(Source http://www.bbc.co.uk/nature/24623773)
This I find ironic because if you look into the reason behind the law, it wasn't actually for the sake of the birds; it was to stop the common folk from killing the birds and restricting the High Folk from eating the Swans at their favourite banquets!
Swans are no longer a 'Rich Folk' delicasy thank goodness, but they do still have protection from the crown.
In the 1980's Swan numbers were decreasing and there was a 'national annual count' initiated to keep an eye on them. The decline was attributed to lead weights that were used at the time for fishing. These have now been banned. Thankfully the Swan seems to be thriving again and the figures are stable.
I am extremely lucky to be able to live very close to these majestic birds and it is an unwritten rule (or perhaps it is written somewhere); basically everyone knows that you NEVER let your dogs near Swans, especially when they are nesting. I find it very sad when at least once a year, I come across a dead swan that has obviously been attacked, most likely by a dog, given the fact that we don't really have any preditors here in England that would be able to take on these beautiful creatures.
They are extremely strong, despite their graceful appearance. In fact, we were told as children 'Don't let them get you or they will break your arm with their beaks!' (I am not entirely sure how true this is either, as you can tell, Swans haunt many childhood memories in the UK thanks to parents!)
These images are my own, taken with my Nikon D5300, using a Sigma 18-300mm lens and edited using PhotoScape software, which you can find free online. (http://www.photoscape.org/ps/main/download.php)
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Lovely photos and story! It's great to see that such beautiful birds are guarded in your country! In my country swans are not protected and therefore they can simply be killed for the sake of entertainment. I would like that we also had such laws ...
That is such a shame :( They are beautiful creatures and truly deserve protection
Why hasn't the crown lifted that ban on ownership of swans by commoners .
Aren't they tired of eaten swans yet?
You would think so wouldn't you! They don't eat Swans anymore, but they are still protected by the crown which is actually a good thing, especially since the decline in the 1980's :)
The first picture is so beautiful! And, i learned so much in the blog you offered! I had no idea they're royally protected! Great post 💖
Thank you for your kind words :) I am so happy you enjoyed the post!
I used to love walking along the Thames in the summer watching the swans and ducks bobbling along peacefully - until someone comes along and feed them with bread then all the ducks scramble viciously for the feed leaving the poor swans with nothing
Yep! Another big issue, unfortunately for the ducks too! Bread is actually bad for the birds, even though we have been feeding them bread for years as a family pastime. 'Lets go feed the ducks' was a regular thing to hear as a child. We would grab our stale loaves, head to the local nature reserve, throw it in and wait for the swarm of wings! The problem with this is it bloats in the bird's stomach and really doesn't do them any good at all. We are now told that sweetcorn would be a much better substitute :)
lovely creatures and so peaceful
they truly are arent they! thank you for your comment :)
yea they are, your welcome :)
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so cool articol :) and the photo also amazing 😊@beautifulbullies
thank you :)
They are beautiful, and very elegant, I saw Black swans in Australia, they were very majestic. Really love your photos xx
thank you @trucklife-family :) A black swan! wow! I have never seen one of those before, I bet they are beautiful! x
Swans are very beautiful but they are also kind of aggressive and scare me a little, just like geese, which I have had chase me before!
Also, I like the little royal history lesson.
yes, I have to say I am a little scared of them too! Especially as our parents use to tell us how they could break our arms with one peck! Glad you liked the history side :)
thanks