England’s St Ives is home to Rob Adamson. In addition, he works at the Jones Boatyard, where he is used to seeing the swans in the vicinity. Unfortunately, a lot of these swans are “unlucky” parents.
Numerous hazards over the years, including foxes and flooding, have caused many of the birds to lose their nests. When the Great Ouse started to flood, Adamson felt bad for the birds and made the decision that he wouldn’t let another year pass without trying to stop it.
“ou’re not supposed to interfere, but it had got to the point where they were all going to die,” he told the BBC. Knowing that he couldn’t sleep. He was aware that if he didn’t act to save them, he would later regret it. He wanted to make sure they were okay.
Adamson spent the night building a temporary raft, which he then carried to the riverbank’s end and tied up so it wouldn’t float away.
The mother swan and her nine eggs were all carefully lifted up and placed into the raft by the man. Swans are notorious for being aggressive and temperamental, but curiously, this one only hissed at Adamson rather than attacking him.
Maybe she realized he was merely trying to assist? She might have recognized him as “the Swan Man” instead. Adamson has experience working with swans before. Adamson reportedly assisted in raising and taking care of the young Sid, an orphan, many years ago.
Locals in Essex knew the small cygnet well, largely because Sid originally resisted being released back into the wild when Adamson tried to do so. Sid finally said his goodbyes, but it took some time. Adamson told the BBC that he was living on the river because of nature and that he had nothing but love and respect for it. “I’m in dreamland with all the wildlife… I wouldn’t swap my boat for a £10m house.”
The swan family found that Adamson’s creation was just what they needed because it kept their nest safe despite increasing floods. Adamson is currently considering the possibility of constructing a type of fencing to assist deter foxes from the swan nests.
And people are noticing what he’s doing. His kindness and compassion were recognized in a Facebook post from Jones Boatyard that said, “It took us all by surprise when the water levels in the lower marina shot up on Saturday night.”
“A HUGE thank you to Rob who noticed that the water was lapping around the swans’ nest at 9 pm. If only the Queen knew what great service he was doing for her feathered friends! ” The eggs Adamson saved had hatched, the boatyard later reported!
