Swan Watch 2020 - The Friends of Easter Craiglockhart Hill

Brighid and Siegfried proudly welcomed nine cygnets into the world week. The cygnets were born on Thursday 7th and Friday 8th May. The nest by the causeway has already been abandoned, and taken over by an opportunistic family of ducks! The swan family can now be found sleeping on the grass at the top of the pond. You may also see the new ducklings, as well as coot and moorhen chicks swimming around with their parents.

The cygnets’ grey down will gradually be replaced with brown feathers once the cygnets are about 6 weeks old. They will learn to fly when they are about 4 months old. Some will leave the pond in the autumn; others may remain until next year’s breeding season. Mute swans typically mate for life and can live for an average of 12 years. Our breeding pair Brighid (the female, or pen) and Siegfried (the male, or cob) are both seven years old, and this is their fourth year of nesting at Craiglockhart Pond.

If you wish to feed the birds at the wooden pontoons while the cygnets are young please do so at the grassy banks either side of the pontoons. Last year some cygnets got stuck under the wooden pontoons while diving for food near the edges of the platforms. Hopefully soon they will be big enough to not get trapped underneath. If you are aware that a cygnet has become trapped again please ring the SSPCA or contact the Friends of Easter Craiglockhart Hill through Facebook or Twitter.

Dog walkers, please keep your dogs on the leash and out of the water when walking through the grassed area at the top of the pond.

Photos: John Forbes