black swans were shot<\/a> in the Manukau Harbour after Auckland Airport authorities became concerned about the birds flying into the path of aircraft landing or taking off. <\/p>\nAn airport spokesperson says Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) rules required the airport to manage wildlife hazards. The airport has a dedicated wildlife team that continually monitored bird activity and used non-lethal measures to deter and disperse wildlife away from the airfield. <\/p>\n
\u201cBecause of their size and flocking behaviour, black swans are considered a significant wildlife hazard in the event of a bird strike.\u201d<\/p>\n
Professor James Russell, who specialises in conservation biology at the University of Auckland, says decisions about culling need to be evidence-based.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen an animal is going to be killed, the evidence needs to be real. And there needs to be a high standard for that [evidence].\u201d <\/p>\n
The wider community would also need to be consulted before culling was considered, he says.<\/p>\n
\u201cDoes everyone think that, or is there a large sector of the community that think \u2018no, it\u2019s beautiful that these large, gracious birds are now gracing our beaches and I\u2019m more than willing to accept a bit of poo for that\u2019?\u201d<\/p>\n
Russell says accusing swans of taking food from other seabirds can be a form of \u201cscapegoating\u201d. <\/p>\n
Those who care deeply about seabirds should probably start concentrating on ways to solve climate change \u2013 \u201chow much we drive our fancy cars and take our fancy holidays\u201d \u2013 and overfishing, he says. <\/p>\n
\u201cEven if the swans were taking some of their food, they\u2019re all fighting over such a diminished, collapsed ecosystem so we should probably be turning that finger back at ourselves.\u201d <\/p>\n
John Dyer, a retired wildlife officer with Fish & Game, agrees the collapse of water quality in lakes and ponds in the North Island has driven swans to search for food sources in harbours and at beaches.<\/p>\n
Studies have repeatedly shown that swan faeces had little effect on fresh-water quality. Eutrophication is more likely caused by farm run- off and pollutants like septic tanks.<\/p>\n
David Klee, chief executive of Fish & Game in the Auckland and Waikato region, agrees, saying the collapse of lakes like Whangap\u0113 and Waikare in Waikato meant thousands of swans \u2013 herbivores that eat submerged water plants like seagrass (Zostera) \u2013 have to search elsewhere for food. <\/p>\n
The irony, he says, is that after years of pollutants running into the Manukau, the harbour had been cleaned up, which has attracted the swans back to a food source.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf there is food, they will come, basically.\u201d <\/p>\n
Klee says Fish & Game, which represents the interests of hunters and anglers, will respond to complaints if bird populations are causing a problem. <\/p>\n
\u201cWe often are responding to farmers, for example, if there\u2019s a whole lot of birds on their crops or on their grass.\u201d <\/p>\n
The rib eye of the sky<\/p>\n
Currently, swans can be legally hunted, with a permit, during the May and June season. Hunters can bag up to 20 a day, with around 17,000 shot each year in the North and South Islands. <\/p>\n
Klee says if cooked correctly, young birds make good eating. <\/p>\n
Fish & Game\u2019s website describes swan meat as \u201cdelicious\u201d, with a similar taste to roast beef. Klee has his own recipe for \u201cthe ribeye of the sky\u201d: rub the meat with a barbecue seasoning, grill medium rare, rest and slice thinly. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you like steak, I\u2019d say you\u2019d like swan.\u201d<\/p>\n
However, older birds are a little on the tough side. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you get a long-lived one that\u2019s been flying around for 30 years you might want to put it in the salami or the sausage mix.\u201d <\/p>\n
Quite why black swans (kak\u012b\u0101nau) get such a bad rap is probably because the big birds are the subject of myths that just won\u2019t go away. They\u2019re accused of eating baby flounder, which they don\u2019t. Some say they eat twice their body weight in a day and that their daily droppings weigh the equivalent of a pound of butter. Others fear their children will get nipped if they swim or play nearby. <\/p>\n
Nonsense, says Johns, who has observed their behaviour closely for two years. They\u2019re birds of flight and will take off when a human or dog approaches on a beach. <\/p>\n
\u201cI guarantee if you walk towards a swan in St Heliers it will leg it. They don\u2019t want to be anywhere near you when you\u2019re swimming, so that is not an issue.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Some]()
Some Eastern Bays residents are concerned about the growing number of black swans settling on local beaches. Photo \/ Cameron Pitney<\/p>\n
Swans fall under the Wildlife Act 1953, designated as native but can be hunted. Although they have adapted to seawater, thanks to salt glands above their eyes that help to excrete excess salt through their nostrils, they still need fresh water to drink. <\/p>\n
Quite how swans arrived in New Zealand is still open for discussion. Most believe they were introduced from Australia in the 1860s by immigrants and organisations like the Acclimatisation Society. Some believe a few flew over from Australia, became naturalised and earned their place as a native bird. <\/p>\n
However, the Ministry of Primary Industries (MPI) says although single black swans have been known to arrive from Australia, it is unlikely swans will bring H5 bird flu \u2013 detected recently in ocean-going seabirds in Australia \u2013 to New Zealand. <\/p>\n
Genetic research by Dr Nic Rawlence, from the University of Otago, showed a species of black swan existed in New Zealand but, like the moa, was hunted to extinction soon after humans arrived in the 13th century. <\/p>\n
Johns is appalled that black swans can be legally shot and eaten, describing them as \u201cintelligent, emotional and incredibly social\u201c birds. <\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re incredibly complex. They\u2019re extraordinary so it\u2019s just horrible that they can be hunted.\u201d<\/p>\n
She describes Tahuna Torea as \u201cparadise\u201d for the swans \u2013 no dogs allowed, few people and a freshwater pond at which to raise cygnets. When the Herald visits with Johns, the swans rush out to meet her, clustering round for their daily food and drink. <\/p>\n
She\u2019s named some of them, watched them grow up and move to the nearby beaches. Johns introduces Titan and Ma, who took a young white goose under their wings \u2013 the trio are now inseparable. <\/p>\n
![\"A]()
A swan cygnet drinks, watched by Titan and Ma, the birds who have adopted a white goose at Tahuna Torea Nature Reserve. Photo \/ Kate Johns<\/p>\n
When Titan and Ma approach the container of food to eat, \u201cGoosie\u201d hisses a warning at the other swans to keep away until her adoptive parents have finished. <\/p>\n
What\u2019s not to love about swans, Johns wants to know.<\/p>\n
\u201cHere is the majestic swan, right here in our backyards, wild and harmless, who we can build bonds with if we know how to be with them in a way that is unobtrusive, safe and compassionate.\u201d<\/p>\n
Jane Phare is a senior journalist based in Auckland. Her roles at the Herald have included assistant editor of NZ Herald, editor of the Weekend Herald, founding editor of Viva, features editor and deputy print editor.<\/p>\n
Sign up to The Daily H<\/a>, a free newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"It\u2019s here that she spends several hours a day feeding the swans, checking on the cygnets and politely…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":518330,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[26],"tags":[1443,95,192,3952,7974,117718,7022,4101,25808,11585,94796,125582,33490,20836,3242,440,20829,111,139,69,20840,766,147,544,21047,170448,223,61,406],"class_list":["post-518329","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-wildlife","tag-about","tag-and","tag-are","tag-aucklands","tag-beaches","tag-bestloved","tag-black","tag-debate","tag-divided","tag-eastern","tag-flock","tag-heated","tag-influx","tag-jane","tag-large","tag-local","tag-locals","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz","tag-phare","tag-reports","tag-science","tag-some","tag-suburbs","tag-swans","tag-the","tag-to","tag-wildlife"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518329","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=518329"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/518329\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/518330"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=518329"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=518329"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=518329"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}