The Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) is turning to the public for help identifying those responsible for shooting and killing two trumpeter swans at a Huron County wildlife area.
Ministry officials say they received a call from a member of the public on Oct. 10 about a trumpeter swan that was found dead in the water at Hullett Marsh Provincial Wildlife Area, located just outside of Clinton.
The swan was found near the middle of the wildlife area, near hunting stake 17, at the southern end of a wetland feature known as Bluebill Pool.
A necropsy of the animal revealed a number of steel shot pellets in its upper chest cavity and neck, said Drew Pegrum, a conservation officer with MNRF who is leading the investigation.
Speaking at the scene with the caller, Pegrum says he learned of the second swan, which had been seen swimming injured around stake 17 with a broken wing.
“Staff members with the Friends of Hullett, they tried to capture the swan, but were unable to get close enough. I returned the following day, and that swan died as well,” Pegrum told CBC London on Friday.
“I was aware, obviously at that point, that somebody had shot, likely, into a flock of these swans, killing the one and wounding the other, and when they realized what they’d done, they decided it was time to get out of there instead of doing the right thing and reporting the situation to the Ministry of Natural Resources.”
A map of Hullett Marsh Provincial Wildlife Area in Huron County, just east of Clinton, Ont. Hunting stake 17 can be seen at the southern end of Bluebill Pool. (Friends of Hullett)
Hullett Marsh Provincial Wildlife Area sits along the Maitland River, and spans more than 5,000 acres of Crown-owned hunting land.
It’s divided into two zones — Zone A and Zone B, Pegrum said. In Zone A, where the swans were found, hunters can only hunt ducks, geese, and other migratory birds during the hunting season.
“Swans don’t have any open season in the province of Ontario, for any species of swan,” Pegrum said. “That bird is not meant to be hunted. It’s not meant to be killed.”
While Hullett’s trumpeter swan population changes from season to season, he estimates the current population numbers 20 to 25, which is more than previous years.
He says it appears someone attended stake 17, or was near stake 17 to hunt ducks and geese, and in doing so, ended up shooting and killing two swans. Whether it was done accidentally or intentionally remains unclear.
Most hunters in Ontario are ethical and moral people, Pegrum said. However, such an incident can still leave a black mark on the larger hunting community.
“It’ll have a negative impact on people’s opinion of the sport in some ways, right? We don’t want to paint everyone with the same brush, but we want to make sure, from an enforcement standpoint, we’re doing our job, and we’re trying to catch these people who are responsible.”
Anyone with information about who may be responsible is asked to contact the ministry tip line, local ministry office, or Crime Stoppers.