Park visitors urged to be wary of swans

New pair move into pond in Dundee – and have been quick to ruffle feathers with shows of aggression

Visitors to a Dundee park have been warned to be careful amid reports of aggressive swans wreaking havoc in the area.

A pair of new swans appear to have moved into Stobsmuir Park, driving away the previous pair which lived in the pond there.

Members of the public have reported being chased by the male of the new avian couple and having their dogs harassed by it.

A spokesman from Friends of Swannie Ponds, a group that helps look after the park, said on social media: “(It) looks like we may have new resident swans up at the ponds.

“The new male is a big boy, still young. A word of warning – be careful around this new pair.

“They aren’t as tame, nor do they seem as approachable as the last two. Plenty of warning hisses and shows of a challenge from him by puffing his wings out.”

Visitors reported seeing the new swans being aggressive towards the previous resident male, which had to be rescued by the Scottish SPCA.

Rian Ross said: “The new pair were basically harassing him. They had him up on Stobsmuir Road and up against the railings on Clepington Road and the new swan has also hissed at me and chased me.”

The resident female was also reported missing a few days later and is believed to have flown away permanently.

Park visitor Lorna Mitchell said: “The male was hissing at our dog. I thought maybe they had another baby on the island as this was unusual behaviour.”

The Scottish SPCA were called out to deal with the situation.

Senior animal rescue officer Ben Soutar said: “We can confirm we did attend Stobsmuir Park in Dundee on August 17 to deal with two swans being aggressive towards another swan.

“Swans . are territorial and will sometimes try and take over where others are resident and this can result in fighting among them.

“We removed one of the birds and released him at another location.

“If anyone does encounter an aggressive swan, do not run but move away safely and contact our animal helpline on 03000 999 999.”

A Dundee City Council spokesman said the local authority was “monitoring the situation” at Stobsmuir Park.

He added: “We would advise the public to be careful near swans.”

The new swans at the park have chased dogs and members of the public.