Cygnets rescued after tragic death of swans in Newport canal 'doing brilliantly' says Shropshire rescue charity
A rescue charity that helped save a clutch of eggs left abandoned after the death of two nesting swans in Newport has said the five surviving cygnets are "doing brilliantly".
Cuan Wildlife Rescue has provided an update about a brood of cygnets, rescued after the clutch of eggs was left abandoned following the tragic death of two breeding swans in Newport.
The pair of mute swans, which had been nesting along the towpath on Newport canal, were both found dead on the morning of Thursday, May 1.
West Mercia Police initially believed the pair had been shot with an air rifle but an autopsy later revealed the swans had likely been killed by another animal.
The 11 eggs were taken in by Cuan Wildlife Rescue in Much Wenlock, who launched an appeal to raise £300 for a larger incubator.
The appeal was hugely successful, receiving more than £2,000 in a matter of hours and allowing the charity to purchase an incubator which they said was "far better than we could have imagined".
Within a couple of weeks, Cuan revealed six of the eggs had hatched, with five cygnets surviving. The other five eggs had not been viable.
Now the rescue charity has said that all five cygnets "are doing brilliantly".
A spokesperson for Cuan Wildlife Rescue said: "The mute swan cygnets that came into us as eggs after the tragic deaths of their parents are doing brilliantly!
"The five are out on one of our big waterfowl pools and have been joined by two other cygnets that we had in.
"They have grown loads and are developing just as they should be, both physically and in their behavioural development.
"In a couple of months' time they will be soft released back to the wild to a private lake where they can be monitored for a while, but will be able to fly away to find their own territories when they feel ready."
