-Dec 28, 20171 min2013 Cygnets All Successfully PlacedIn an amazing testimony to their parenting skills, all six cygnets of Stan and Wendy became viable juveniles and were placed in pairs for...
-Dec 28, 20171 minPippa Falls To Avian BotulismPippa, a 4 year old female, died of avian botulism toxin a few days ago. She was a sibling of Susie, and lost out to Susie for the...
-Dec 28, 20171 minThe 2014 Cygnets Have ArrivedStan and Wendy performed their annual hatching, getting six babies in the water on Day 2, or May 4. For some reason, by Day 4 the flock...
-Dec 28, 20171 minAlan Passes Peacefully, Beverly SurvivesAlan and Beverly were the oldest pair from the nests of George and Gracie. Alan was found still in the water on June 29 with no signs of...
-Dec 28, 20172 minStan Battles Illness, Lee Fox's Rehab SuccessfulWhen Stan was absent for two days at the "daily feeding frenzy", it was on to the bicycle to scour the golf course for his whereabouts. ...
-Dec 28, 20171 minThe Long Hot SummerWhile the hopes for a successful first brood for Sully and Susie were tempered by their young age, the results were spectacular. They...
-Dec 28, 20171 minTweaking The Veterinary ProcessesThe cygnet processing in May had three goals; 1) pinioning, 2) microchipping, and 3) gender testing from blood feathers. From the time...
-Dec 28, 20172 minReturn of the CygnetsAs of today, three of the eight cygnets remain in Stan and Wendy's territory. They are no longer social and the parents will soon move...
-Dec 28, 20171 minCapture and ReleaseWith only one of four cygnets captured from Stan and Wendy, the process of capturing the three had to wait until the parents decided it...
-Dec 28, 20171 minPredicting the UnpredictableWhat a hot dry spring. Imagine sitting on a nest for 35 straight days with such conditions. Both breeding pairs were taxed to the max,...
-Dec 28, 20171 minRIP Stan: The First NamedWhen the Observer began their chronical of the Longboat swans, I was asked, besides Alan Stone's George and Gracie, about the names of...
-Dec 27, 20172 minSaving WendyWith Stan away, never to return, Wendy went about her parental duty to raise the three cygnets in their home territory. To the north,...
-Dec 27, 20171 minWhat? They Can Fly?As they say, the best laid plans of mice and men and swankeepers will always go awry...or something like that. The two cygnets of Sully...
-Dec 27, 20171 minThe Loss Of 2016 CygnetsThe good news was that Susie and Sully did not nest in the same sand trap as they did the previous two years. The bad news was that...
-Dec 27, 20171 minPrincipled Gifting IOf the five cygnets from 2015, three were placed on LBK. The two males from Susie and Sully were designated as "excess" since the...
-Dec 27, 20171 minThe Name Game...... Shirley, Shirley....First, names are important and, second, when I put up a slide of the names of LBK swans, it mesmerizes the audience. So here is a...
-Dec 27, 20171 minPrincipled Gifting IIThe male pair being harbored at Camelot Lakes were awaiting placement elsewhere, and Eric and I did our best to explore all options. ...
-Dec 27, 20171 minIt Takes Heart.....and SmartsI've always said that swan care comes with surprises, but it's all teachable moments. With the people of Sunnyside Lakes so motivated,...
-Dec 27, 20171 minWhy Not the Zoo?A phone call out of the blue from Sarasota Jungle Gardens on problems with their swans started it all. One swan had died and the other...
-Dec 27, 20171 minSo Long, Good BuddyEric came to LBK to learn how to care for his swan pair at Camelot Lakes. When I saw him take a hard fall capturing an adult swan, and...