MUTE SWANS IN MARYLAND

Are swans really ruining the Chesapeake Bay?

Mute swans are blamed for the depletion of sub aquatic vegetation in the Chesapeake Bay, but in no way are they actually a threat to the ecosystem.  The Chesapeake is a dynamic ecosystem with many stressors including pollution, boats, and conflicts with developing coastal land. Not to mention, there are numerous of other waterfowl whom are regulars to the Chesapeake and, like mute swans, eat underwater vegetation. It is just not realistic to put all of the blame for ecosystem damage on a couple thousand birds. More likely, swans are being used as a scapegoat for our political failure to deal with other problems and  due to their uncertain naturalization in the U.S.


Management of Maryland's Mute Swans

For years, Maryland's Department of Natural Resources (DNR) has been killing thousands of mute swans in the Chesapeake Bay. Since 2005, the agency has killed more than 4,000, and now, there are less than 450 swans left in the Bay. The DNR claims that the swans are damaging the ecosystem by consuming aquatic plants, but there is absolutely no evidence to back up this claim and it's established that the major cause of damage to the Bay is the 500 million pounds of pollutants that factory farms and sewage treatment plants dump into the Bay each year. Because there is no conclusive proof that mute swans are native to the U.S., they are being used as a scapegoat in the controversy over the Bay. 

Not only is the DNR's  management plan inhumane and unnecessary, but eyewitnesses have reported that the killings are randomized and just plain cruel.  In cases where swans are captured, the swans’ necks are crushed and “separated” with a bolt-cutter like implement that “dislocates” the neck vertebrae/spinal cord.

The DNR still continues to ignore options for non-lethal management of mute swans. One of these options would be egg- addling, a process involving temporarily removing eggs from their nests, terminating embryo development, then replacing the eggs. The Humane Society of the United States has offered to cooperatively conduct this viable alternative to killing, only to be refused by the DNR.



TAKE ACTION NOW!


Negotiations with Maryland's Department of Natural Resources have failed to bring a change of fate for the Chesapeake Bay's mute swans. But Maryland's governor, Martin O'Malley, has the authority to call off the brutal killings. Everyone agrees that the few swans left in the Chesapeake are not causing any damage to the bay; they should therefore be left to live and beautify the bay. Please appeal to Governor O'Malley today and speak up for the swans!



1. Sign the petition to Governor O'Malley asking that he step in and speak up for mute swans!

2: Email, write, or call Governor O'Malley to express your concern:


Email address: marylandgov@doit.state.md.us  



Address:


Governor Martin O'Malley

100 State Circle

Annapolis, MD 21401-1925


Phone number: 410-974-3901



What else can we do?

  • Pass this website along to your friends to tell them how they, too can speak up for mute swans!
  •  Send a letter to the Editor or Op-Ed to local newspapers telling why mute swans should not be killed!
  • If you're interested in learning more about and taking action for Delaware's mute swans, click here.




Thank you for speaking up for mute swans!