Beloved swans at Inverness Campus hit by bad health
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The beloved swans at the Inverness Campus which is looked after by Highland and Islands Enterprise have suffered a double loss.
The Inverness Courier reported last month that one of the birds had passed away with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) informed of the incident.
The Scottish SPCA has now confirmed that another of the animals had to be put down following the death.
A spokesman said: “A report was made to our helpline on October 31 regarding a swan at the UHI campus.
“When our animal rescue officer, Natalie Munro, arrived however the swan was deep in the water and could not be reached.
“As the bird was also deceased, removal became a matter for the council’s cleansing department.
“Two other swans were also noted by our officer. One waded deep into the water and could not be reached, despite numerous attempts over the next few days. Unfortunately, the bird was not seen again.
“The other was caught but found to have leeches and, due to also being very underweight, sadly our vets advised we put the animal to sleep.”
The spokesman added: “Due to the current avian flu outbreak, we are currently unable to rehabilitate high risk waterfowl like swans but we will still attend reports of incidents involving these birds and do everything we can to help.
“We encourage members of the public with any concerns about a bird to contact our helpline on 03000 999 999 for advice. If any dead wild birds are found, people are advised not to handle the bodies and instead report the incident to DEFRA’s helpline on 03459 335577.”
