Help Save Michigan’s Mute Swans
Michigan’s Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has declared war on the majestic mute swan. Calling these beautiful, free-ranging and naturalized birds invasive and alien, Michigan plans to kill as many as 1500 a year for the next five years with the goal of slaughtering tens of thousands over the next 18 years.
With virtually no scientific data or support, the DNR claims the mute swan population is out of control and estimates there are approximately 15,500 in Michigan – a number that is highly disputed by experts. Considering there are 35,000 inland lakes and ponds in Michigan, even if their estimates are correct, that’s a lot less than even a single pair of Mute swans per lake.
Since most people cringe at the idea of killing such a beautiful animal, the DNR has waged a relentless dirty campaign to convince us that mute swans are nasty creatures that must be destroyed. Using words like “non-native,” “feral,” “invasive,” and “aggressive,” the DNR hopes to diminish our love and respect for the mute swan all the while claiming they are only protecting “native” waterfowl.
The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) recently presented a management proposal calling for a voluntary moratorium on the killing of mute swans so that mute swan committees could be established to examine any potential problems. This would allow for a proper assessment of the impact, if any, that mute swans are having, while encouraging local citizens to be involved in finding compassionate and humane solutions to any perceived conflicts. (www.savemuteswans.org)
The DNR completely dismisses this idea for humane and compassionate solutions and instead is suggesting the outlandish idea that local community committees should vote to just shoot or otherwise kill mute swans. Incredibly, DNR is even offering permits for individuals to kill mute swans at their own discretion, rather than working with the affected community to mitigate problems and implement humane solutions.
It is up to us to speak out for Michigan’s mute swans and demand humane enlightened treatment for these magnificent birds.
How you can help:
Ask Governor Rick Snyder to intervene immediately to stop this senseless killing: governorsoffice@michigan.gov; or 517-373-3400
Sign the Michigan Mute Swan Petition at http://www.change.org/petitions/stop-the-killing-of-mute-swans-in-michigan
4 Comments
Incredily saddened to read this post. Living in the UK Mute Swans are loved and treasured, on the Thames they come under the Queens Prerogative (ownership) They have lived in the UK for milleniums and have never been known to reach overpopulation numbers, they really are not that prolific in their breeding habits. I also believe they are one of the birds that mate for life. Although I doubt not that the birds on Michigan waters are descendants of Ornamental Birds brought in to grace private lakes and river stretches, there is reason to believe that the Mute was once indigineous to North America, fossil remains having been found. Feral? What an odd accusation, any wild creature can be classed as feral. As for aggression, they are not known for aggressive behaviour, yes, they can be very protective of their nests and cygnats, justly so as they are very vunerable to predator attack, but they have never been known to cause any serious injury to man, perhaps the odd stray small dog or over inquisitive child could get a nasty scare from their ‘aggression display,’ but generally speaking,, that is all it is, a display. Although I am not an expert on aquactic plant life, I was always led to believe that Swans help the eco system of the waters they lived on by ‘weeding’ the river beds and making them more egg laying friendly to fish. I wish you all success in your campaign.
This article hits the nail on the head – Michigan is waging a dirty, unwarranted war on one of nature’s most magnificant creatures. The real reasons have to do with the decades-long goal of getting rid of the Mutes (a bird so associated with love and beauty that it is undesirable as hunting quarry) in order to replace it with the restoration of the Trumpeter Swan species, a swan that was decimated by hunting in the last century and is now being enthusiastically restored so that it can be hunted again. The hunting industry is declining and to try to increase hunters, the plan is to make the Trumpeter the next trophy animal in the bird hunting world – the largest North American waterfowl. The fear is a hybrid between the mutews and the Trumpeters, which can cohabitate, as their life style and habitat is virtually identical.
And that is why killing the Mutes makes no sense. If the Mute Swan is being painted as damaging to the environment, why is the same claim not being made about the Trumpeter? And if the Trumpeter is being held up as a model of bird virtue, why is the Mute not being considered the same? Even the claim of invasive species hold no water, as the Trumpeter is being placed in areas it never lived in previously – doesn’t that make them invasive in those states? Whatr difference does this make anyway? Animals are always migrating beyond their areas, never more so than with climate and habitat changes. Furthermore, the Mutes have been here a minimum of 200 years, 400 in some areas. Is Michigan the same pristine wilderness it was 200-400 years ago? Hardly. In addition to which, the DNR and Fish & Wildlife themselves import invasive species all the time to appease hunters.
The fact is, it is about time that these government agencies stopped catering exclusively to the hunting special interest minority that will do and say anything for the thrill of a kill and start paying attention to the vast majority of the population that is more environmental in nature and prefers to ejoy its willdife alive and not dead. The DNR, Fish & Wildlife and other agencies better start to figure out that they can no longer fool the public with lies, smoke and mirrors,and environmentalism is the source of where their jobs will be funded in the future. If any culling is in order, it is with these agencies. The swans should be left alone.
Our Michigan DNR just sent out a letter thanking the hunters and the fishermen for supporting their conservation efforts. They actually say in the letter that our (the general public) tax dollars does not pay for anything the wildlife division does. They are a “.gov” yet they never listen to what the general public wants regarding our wildlife and natural resources.
What if they are hurting our native species and we find that out too late?