Community Corner

Swan Tangled in Fishing Line and a Hook Rescued

A hook was stuck in a swan's leg, but thanks to a wildlife rehabilitator the waterfowl was set free.

The Prospect Park Lake is a serene place, but fishing hooks, left behind by anglers, are a danger to its many inhabitants.

Luckily, the park’s waterfowl have two good eagle-eyed friends.

Anne-Katrin Titze, who is a licensed wildlife rehabilitator, and her partner, Ed Bahlman spotted a cygnet injured by a barbed fishing hook, which was stuck in its right leg on November 15.

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The couple walks around the lake and watercourse several times a week to enjoy the beauty, but also to make sure no animals are in need of help.

“The waterfowl, when injured, show themselves through their behavior if they need to be rescued,” Titze wrote in an E-mail, explaining how they spotted the swan in need. “It is extremely important to be able to accomplish a rescue as quickly as possible in order to minimize the harm to the animal.”

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Titze and Bahlman have done dozens of rescues in Prospect Park, including helping injured birds, freeing turtles from poaching traps and freeing dogs entangled in discarded fishing line.

On that Tuesday morning, the couple spotted the swan with a hook lodged in its leg and moved in to help. Bahlman positioned himself between the swan and the lake. He then “calmly captured” the cygnet by securing its wings, which according to Titze, helps the bird relax.

Then Titze moved in with a pair of needle-nose pliers and extracted the barbed hook.

Titze says that the swan was injured by “careless” anglers who discard their fishing line and hooks improperly. The couple is heavily involved in improving the environment at Prospect Park Lake and .

They have also met with the Prospect Park Alliance about the need to have signs near the water with fishing rules and regulations.

After the rescue, the swan was happily swimming in the water with its family.

As an homage to the cyanobacterial algae on the lake, the couple named the swan “Floret,” which means “a small flower.”


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