Happy Birthday Swan Island!
Jay is celebrating Swan Island reaching its second birthday this week!
I’ve got to admit, I hadn’t even realised it had been carefully constructed – seeing the river has various shallows and grassy banks, I just assumed it had developed naturally.
The fact that it was specially constructed and developed specifically for nesting, not least raising the next after last year’s high tides, deserves a heart applause.
While Jay’s ornithological passion is periodically covered on the Gurn, it’s nice to see just how much work he’s been putting in.
It’s especially nice to read how he engages with tourists, and highlights the swans as a tourist interest. Come to think of it, whenever we’re out visiting and see swans, they always draw us in for a closer look and photos. It’s little details like these that can really make a visit more enjoyable.
In the meantime, congrats and good to see the swans doing well. 
Comments
16 Responses to “Happy Birthday Swan Island!”
Leave a Reply
Visited 614 times, 1 so far today
My Nairn Blog- Record wet summer for Scotland
- VJ Day tribute at Fort George: Colossal Celebration of the Centuries
- Nairn on Bing Maps
- Cloned cows at Inverness?
- Rosebank School deputy dies in horse fall
- Inverness explodes!
- Harbour boats burned
- Highland Aviation Museum gets Nimrod
- New flats to replace Lodgehill Clinic?
- Highland Green Party – still very out of touch
It’s a shame really, he could be a really good ambassador for our wildlife on the river but as he admits on his blog he is a bit of a zealot and as such often ostracises people.
There is always the danger that by taming wildlife they will become too trusting to their demise
The swans and the signets are a great attraction for all who visit the harbour or river, but JT has to realise they are not his.
All wildlife and bird groups advocate that wild water birds should not be fed except in extreme winter weather, JT ignores this.
Bread of all kinds is a harmful food for these birds and it would be great if JT set an educating example and stopped feeding them, and politely pointed this out to others on his many daily patrols!
I understand Bill’s concerns regarding my feeding of the Swans etc. Perhaps I can mitigate what I do by explainng a few things to Bill. It was always thought feeding wild birds during the winter was no bad thing, and this has now been extended by various bird organisations to feeding them throughout the year. I do try to educate people not to feed the Swans White bread, and point out the value of Grass and carrots etc. In the case of the Nairn river Swans there is a good reason why I feed them all year round. The river is fast flowing and not ideally suited to Swans, from September until April there is virtually no weed growth for the Swans to eat, they can of course get some seaweed in the sea. I do not for a moment consider the Swans to be tame or belong to me, they tolerate me because I give them food but can still distinguish friend or foe. My ability to get very close to them can prove to be helpful, in the case of catching them to remove fishing line or hooks ! The spate of a few weeks ago washed almost all their food supply away as well as dredging activity, it is beginning to grow back but this will be short lived due to the lateness of the season. 10 Swans can consume rather a lot of food, and I give them a variety, including grass,dandelion leaves spinach, 6 carrots daily, and wholemeal or brown bread. It might interest Bill to know that even if you gave each swan 1 slice of bread this would amount to half a loaf! I know from experience that even a duck can tuck away 2 slices no problem! I have been studying and feeding swans for 6 years and truly feel that I have contributed to their current success. The cygnets will be leaving in about 6 weeks or so, and I think they will have been given the best possible start to get through their first winter and start life’s journey.
well done too you its good to see you take an active part in looking after their welfare. and may you continue to look after them as you say you have studied them for six years and have their interests at heart. keep up the good work
all the
best
billy
You would make a great politician JT as you always try and dodge certain questions ☺
There are many, many statements by numerous leading animal welfare organisations stating that bread is bad for birds (White or brown) as it acts as a filler.
http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/1954210/Ban-bread-as-bird-food.html
If as you state the river doesn’t provide enough food for the swans why on earth have you created a man made island to encourage them to nest here? Surely the swans should be nesting in a place that can naturally sustain them otherwise you are in effect creating a zoo? What is worse is that feeding them even brown bread will shorten their lives. I’m sure everyone appreciates your interest in the swans but please stop feeding them bread. A lack of natural food might encourage them to move to more suitable habitat. I’m sure we would all miss them but their welfare should be paramount rather than our enjoyment?
Certainly plenty of suggestions on the Telegraph site:
“The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds said it holds little nutritional value and suggested instead giving them a range of alternatives, including cake crumbs, crushed biscuits, grated cheese, leftover jacket potatoes, breakfast cereal, overripe strawberries and porridge oats. ”
Jay, I could bring in some pondweed if it may be of help – just about to clear out my pond now this year’s frogs and toads have grown up and moved on. Not a big pond, but may be of help.
Breadcrumb brigade issues can be a highly charged debate as we’ve witnessed over on the Gurn. Keep cool folks
If I were you Brian,I would be very carefull about transporting plants,alien species,etc about the countryside.The New Fisheries Act prohibits this.
Good call, Jingle – I’ll make sure I’m careful on that.
Bill, I read the Telegraph article you supplied and noted that it was aimed mainly at people feeding birds in their gardens. I also noted the comments of Chris Packham, the naturalist who is also a vice-president of the RSPB, said:
“I understand where they are coming from: bread is not the best thing to feed birds but I would be reluctant to tell people to stop.
“One of my formative memories was being taken to a lake near Arundel when I was about four.
“I remember feeding the ducks. There was an extraordinary variety of shapes and colours. It was amazing.
“If you are serious about feeding a bird you really have to put your hand in your pocket these days.”
I think if i was a politician Bill the first thing i would do is get rid of all the so called experts and consultants etc, that cost us a fortune and do little for the real world.
I would much rather take the advice of people on the ground at the sharp end and in the real world.
The proof of the feeding is in the Swans for all to see. I said the river was not ideal, but then my flat roofed house is not ideal either, but we all have to make the best of what we’ve got. The swans tried to lay eggs in the river for several years only to be flooded by the tide. They obviously thought the river was a good place to nest and I merely obliged by raising the island. The river food supply during the rearing time is ideal for the Swans so the location of the nesting island makes pretty good sense as has been proved.In my(expert)amateur opinion, I think our Swans are doing exceptionally well with a variety of foods, and their offspring will fly from here in about 6 weeks time with enough reserves to help them through their first winter no matter how severe that might be.
The idea of creating the island was to avoid Swan and cygnet deaths, this was based on experience not on experts, and so far it has worked.
JT
Good for you the swans look happy to me and it was one of the very few things we enjoyed on our recent visit to Nairn.
No matter what you do there is always a critic.
Having spent so many wonderful holidays there as a kid I still read all the online papers and blogs and it will come as no suprise that is is always the same people who critisize everything.
Keep it up JT
The Swans were coping perfectly well before Joe came along to be the self-proclaimed riverside ecological(amateur expert) dictator. Yes there were failures but that’s nature.
Any attempt to help local wildlife is laudable.
I very much appreciate all the positive comments regarding my efforts with the Swans island etc.
The Dude obviously knows Nairn and some of the critics pretty well according to his comment.
A bit off topic but I’m sorry you had such a bad holiday experience and I can understand why. Maybe someday Nairn will free itself of the wreckers and small minded back stabbing critics, and get some real civic leadership to take the town forward. Nairn has a natural nucleus of a great seaside town, and should listen to all suggestions even if they are from newcomers. All too often people are slapped down if they put forward suggestions that dont suit people with rigid mindsets. Some Nairn critics are only interested in talking things to a standstill and nothing ever actually gets done. Some of us are the exception.
Hi JT
Thanks for your comments, most of my sadness was not so much from Nairn as from the inner turmoil caused by this holiday.
I have such good memories of Nairn as a youngster it was a fabulous place, it still is.
However reading all the blogs and the online news papers over the last year sent me hurling back in time.
I just can’t explain.
Anyway I had hyped it up so much to the family that it could never have lived up to my hype.
So when the big argument happened I felt the whole world was against me.
I had spoiled the only two weeks we get to spend a year together.
I stormed out off the river feeling sorry for myself and came across the swans.
As I approached the rivers edge they sailed over to me.
The first thing that struck me was how many cygnets there were, normally only four survive.
As I sat there watching them I calmed down, they saved me as I was so depressed I do not know what I had in mind, but the swans were beautiful and trusting and calmed me enough to go back to the caravan and to drive home without further misshaps.
So as I said there is always someone out there willing to criticise, willing to stir things up for the hell of it, just to get a rise.
I do not know if Brian will allow me to swear but where I come from we call them shit stirrers “ Sorry Brian”
All we can do is rise above them and ignore them, they are looking for a rise a reaction and the best thing we can do is not give them it
“not good for the blogs I know”
Just like Jake He appears to have latched onto my comments to slag a councillor which is the last thing I want.
All I wanted to do was let you guys know that there has been big changes in your town and not always for the best, but from what I can see there are at least two.
YOUR Swans and your belly dancing Provost.
Cheers
The Dude
PS sorry for my first Blog it was writen out of frustration
My Turn to be Antagonistic.
Eight Cygnets Bill Eight and they are all beautiful.
Just think how many people this family of Swans has made happy.
They are brilliant the way they glide over the water.
So what if you find it not 100% natural.
The other 99.99999% of the population who look at them just think wow to get this close to nature is beautiful.
I certainly did I did not run back to my computer to see if the little girl feeding the cygnets was doing any harm.
I just sat there coming out of my self pity watching the excitement on the little girls face as she fed the swans.
Sorry Bill but some people just take things a little to far.
Have you never thought of playing golf or fishing or maybe go for a couple of beers.
As for your comments about zoos, Well all I can say is I love going to the zoo but I enjoyed JT’s swans better
Chill Bill have a beer
Hi Dude, Your reactions to the Swans and the calming peace they bring, is exactly what they do for me also. The therapeutic value they brought to me 6 years ago when my life was at a particularly low ebb was immense. As time passed I found a deep closeness to nature and realised the spiritual value to taking the time and making the effort to understand the value of all life.
We are so busy looking after our own species and trashing the environment we all share. I think more thought should be put into caring for all the other natural things which enrich all our lives.
As a species I think we are so wrapped up in consumerism and the complexities of life, that we have almost lost the ability to chill out and be at one with nature and all it’s beauty and diversity. Nairn is a great place and should be talked up, you’re analysis of certain critics is spot on. I hope the Swans will always be here for you and all others who get joy and peace from them. My Best wishes jt.