In an amazing testimony to their parenting skills, all six cygnets of Stan and Wendy became viable juveniles and were placed in pairs for what hopes to be a long and happy life.
Clare and Greta, females (pens), were captured and re-located to the Islandside Golf Course. They initially headed in different directions seeking what they remember as "home turf", but after three days found each other and established a new territory near the 11th tee. Named for supporters Hein and Clare Rusen and for supporters Bill and Sue (Greta) Rainville, they are the first of three same gender pairs planned for Islandside.
A male and female were given to the Camelot Lakes community in Sarasota. The community has two lakes, one with an existing swan pair. Resident Eric Bors-Koefoed had volunteered his time and efforts with the Longboat swans and rallied his community to support the efforts to create an ideal environment there. The swan pair can be seen to the east of Gantt Road, north of Clark Road.
The male pair (cobs), Nik and Bello, named for the local circus notables, avoided capture on numerous occasions and were in danger as Stan was clearing all "invaders", family or not, from his territory in preparation for nesting. With a change in capture strategy, I was able to combine Stan's aggressiveness with my stealth to "rescue" both. The pair were then placed west of the Harbourside Club House and fed in various locations to keep them from roaming and to help them define their own territory.