Swans

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Fred Bonney

Guest
Sitting peacefully on a 23acre lake,fishing the margins and a ridge dropping off to 6'after 2 rod lengths,I was disturbed on numerous occasions by one pair of the two pairs of swans in residence.
Loose feeding with hemp sweetcorn and casters,probably didn't help,but have any of you any methods of moving them off,apart from a boulder on the head??
 
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Mike Fidler

Guest
Fred, i've no time for swans at all, I've found that telling them to bee off usually helps with the menace of a landing net handle shaken at them. For some reason they don't expect us humans to be nasty so I take a firm attitude from the start. If all else fails out comes the catapault and a bombardment of soft groundbait balls does the trick.
 
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Barry Kneller

Guest
One of the old Richard Walker tricks works for me most of the time - get a handful of mud (the blacker & smellier the better) & throw it over the swans pristine white feathers, it won't do it any harm but the swan will sod off for half an hour or so to clean itself.
 
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John Pleasance

Guest
Fred,I also use the mud method and landing net,but I shake the "thick end" of the net at them(it's more intimiating than the handle).
 
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Fred Bonney

Guest
thanks guys,i've shaken the thick end and it works for seconds!!
My bait just tastes too good for swans ,if not the fish.
The thick black stuff sounds good except mine's heavy gravel(stones) and we can't use that, can we?
 
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Kevan Farmer

Guest
Posibly the best way to avoid upsetting any hidden members of the public is to toss a load of bread in the next swim. Hopefully they will concentrate on that.

Kevan
 
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disco dan

Guest
I always take a bag of the cheapest pellets i can get from the tackle shop with me and if no one in the next swim feed them with them a handfull at a time every time they come near and at the no have been unplagued in my own swim.Its just that swans see humans as food dispensers so sadley we will have to put up with them.
 
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Laurie Harper

Guest
Wonderful trick, Barry. Will try it. Even if it doesn't work, the idea is hilarious. How about carrying a stuffed swan, which you could leave floating upside down, tied to your bank stick? The live ones would turn up and think, "I'm out of here. Look what this blokes just done to that poor bugger." Sort of similar to the old practice of leaving felons hanging by the side of the road to act as a deterent to others.
 
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Ron Clay

Guest
I could of course tell you how Ray Webb used to deal with swans but it wouldn't go down too well with some people.

Seriously, I never have much of a problem with them. Never, Never, ever feed them. In fact never ever feed any wild bird or animal.

Wild animals have their own way of finding food and it is positively cruel to feed them artificially.

Keep your bait and sandwiches well out of site. Do not throw bait in the water when swans are in the vicinity.

When a swan comes past keep dead still and do not make eye contact.

As a last resort. Tap the swan on it's back with your rod tip. They don't like that.
 
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Cakey

Guest
Im a great believer that swans and ducks in my swim is a good thing when Im carp fishing.
If you spook swans and ducks away I think mister carp will follow !!!

A mate gave me a tip once that Ive never used but here it is anyway,soak chum mixer in night nurse and feed swans after awhile they fall asleep.
 
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John McLaren

Guest
In principle I agree with Cakey, I'm never too worried about waterbirds paddling through, better to let them pass undisturbed.

However I have had one or two run-ins with swans: on one or two waters I fish the resident mutes have learned that anglers often throw bait in at the end of a session, so as soon as you start packing up they arrive and are not content to wait - they come up the bank to give you a hand "can I 'elp you with that plastic bait bucket mate? Any bread you dob't want?" -Quite intimidating.

Fishing wise the biggest problem is the one Fred refers to - swans hoovering up you nicely laid bed of sweet corn or caster, and what can you do when the swim is under 4 foot deep?
 
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Cakey

Guest
Stuart uses a different approach ,on the first cast he falls in frighting everything in his swim !
 
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Curly

Guest
I have been scared of Swans since I was kid. My Mom told me never to p**s a Swan off because they can break your arms and legs.

Funny really that I still carry this thought with me. When one approaches me I just freeze and never look into it's eyes, I suppose you could say I treat it like a Pitbull.
 
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Curly

Guest
Just to add to that above. A friend of mine is even more scared of them than I am. A couple of years back, me and this Friend went fishing to a local Gravel Pit that had a family of swans.

The Fishing on this particular day was all but useless. So to amuse myself, I saw the Family of Swans approaching my Mate, and I also noticed the fear on his face, so I stared catapulting bread in my Mates direction. The look on his face was priceless.

He was unable to get to his tackle for about 20 minutes. Great fun.

Neil
 
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Mark Bullen

Guest
i have heard that about the swans but i just think it is an old wifes tale, their more scared of u than u are of them
 
GrahamM

GrahamM

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I'm talking a long time ago here so bear that in mind before having a go.........

Some older anglers from the midlands region will know exactly who I'm talking about.

An old aquaintance of mine used to dive on and wrestle swans when they came into his swim, and once a year he would organise a big 'do' on behalf of the group he belonged to and the main dish was always swan. He said it was payback time for all the swims they knackered.

I can tell you, I don't like them live, and I'm not much for them dead either.
 
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Davy North

Guest
You could always tell the swan Rolf Harris and a film crew were on the way, and they'd soon nick off!
 
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andrew jackson

Guest
Lazer pens, NOT IN THEIR EYES. They hate them, just waggle it around on their flank and they are gone, they have the same affect on other bird life. I carry a little one on a keyring so it is easy to hand. But like I said dont shine them into their eyes, not like some of the prats I have witnessed.
 
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Cakey

Guest
Mark Bullen
Im not surprised swans are frightened of you if your photos anything to go by!
 
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Stuart Dennis

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If you've ever done a night fishing session with Cakey, then you need nothing else than a recording of his bivvy antics to scare the swans. Fishing with Cakey is like listening to two gorillas mating and that’s just his snoring!
He left me totally flabergasted one night when he said and I quote “ I like to leave the radio on at night when I go to sleep, to keep the rats away from my bivvy and baits”.!!!!

Rats my ass, he could’ve kept away anything that night, but then again that could account for him blanking!
 
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