Published October 21, 2009

Letter: Down with DNR on swan decision chat

By Marjorie Heeren, Worthington, Worthington Daily Globe

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wes h.
Sioux Falls, SD     10/31/2009 12:00 AM

I absolutely love baby ducks [ducklings]. But I don't look at any websites that I'm not familiar with.I do believe c.c.has good pictures of ducks at the fish ponds. Again I think it is up to the owners of the non native swans to provide housing for their birds. I don't know how to make it clearer than that.

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C C.
10/28/2009 9:04 AM

I have a lot more pictures of ducks at the rearing ponds that I have taken, better one's, but this one has the pool's waterside in the background so there is no question as to where this picture was taken. http://yfrog.com/13ducksatrearingpondwgtnj. There was many, many ducks that nested there this spring. If I were to guess, I say there were at least a dozen, if not more, that had their babies there. Most were Mallards, but there were other species as well. :)

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C C.
10/28/2009 8:37 AM

According to council meeting minutes, as of 2 years ago, the rearing ponds were in need of repair so if you repair them, it would be logical to assume that they would be in use. http://tiny.cc/5loMs And I can attest that there are indeed many ducks that nest around the rearing ponds. We often go there to see the ducklings. Too cute. :)

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wes h.
Sioux Falls, SD     10/27/2009 5:06 PM

I was talking to my Worthington sibling today who thought that native ducks might nest on the fish ponds so I think Brandon R is correct that the city property is not good either for keeping the swans on. The original writer of this article thought it was a big deal that the owners of the swans feed them at their own expense. Well why shouldn't they feed their birds? They are also responsible for fencing their swans in. It would be no big deal to put up a fence. I'm sure plenty of reputable contractors would be happy to erect a fence on the owners property. I don't understand why people want to give the DNR people a rough time for doing their job enforcing Federal Migratory Bird laws. Seems to me awhile back people were griping about ICE enforcing immigration laws at JBS. I thank both the DNR people and the ICE people for doing their job. Well done.

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wes h.
Sioux Falls, SD     10/24/2009 3:51 PM

Brandon R.while I believe you and I are in agreement to a large extent but I don't think the fish rearing ponds are used for fish any more. In just driving around the ponds I couldn't tell if any ducks and geese were nesting there. The ponds did seem to have a lot of reeds around them so it was hard to see very much. I get to Worthington often because I have a sibling living there yet. All my parents and grandparents lived there at one time. I also lived and worked in Worthington for a few years.

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Brandon R.
Windom, MN     10/24/2009 2:18 PM

City property is still not a good idea as native waterfowl may use the fish rearing ponds for nesting. If the mute swans uproot vegetation they'll certainly create cloudy water, reducing the water quality and inhibiting the growth of walleye frye. Uprooting of vegetation will also remove nesting cover for native waterfowl.

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wes h.
Sioux Falls, SD     10/22/2009 8:47 AM

That's some good information c.c. I saw those trumpeter swans a few years ago in Sunset Bay too. I think there were 4 or 5 of them. I was reading somewhere that mute swans have taken over areas of the great lakes and were hindering the trumpeter swans from nesting there. Mute swans can be very aggresive. 40 some years ago I was hauling rock with a wheelbarrow and spreading it around the ponds of a private game reserve. Along with all the other ducks and geese there were mute swans. Every time I tried to dump the rock on shore one male mute swan tried to attack me. I had to keep him at bay with a shovel. Regardless of all the opinions the DNR has said the law must be obeyed and I think that is the final answer.The swans have to be confined.

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C C.
10/22/2009 12:08 AM

The Mute swans won't ruin the country, but Mute swans are very aggressive even toward people. They chase water birds including loons, and can keep those birds from nesting. One bird can uproot about 20 pounds of submersed aquatic vegetation daily, reducing important native aquatic plants. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/invasives/terrestrialanimals/muteswan/index.html. Program Purpose: Curb the spread and minimize harmful effects of nonnative species that can: 1. cause displacement of, or otherwise threaten, native species in their natural communities; or 2. threaten natural resources or their use in the state.Program Goals: * Prevent introductions of new invasive species into Minnesota. * Prevent the spread of invasive species within Minnesota. * Reduce the impacts caused by invasive species to Minnesota's ecology, society, and economy. http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/eco/invasives/index.html

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Bill R.
Tracy, MN     10/21/2009 11:01 PM

wes h., nobody's proposing completely eliminating wild horses, even though there's lots of 'em. But God forbid the spread of mute swans. They'll ruin the country.

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C C.
10/21/2009 10:35 PM

Neal: I think you are right. I remember seeing another pair of swans a few years ago, and thought they were Trumpeters or Tundra swans. They no longer appear here, irregardless. :( What a wonderful thing it would be if a pair of native species swans decide to make our lake their home.

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