An investigation has been launched after a rare trumpeter swan was found shot and killed north of Peterborough in late September.
According to the Ministry of Northern Development, Mines, Natural Resources and Forestry, on Sept. 25 around 8:30 a.m., two swans were seen flying over Nogies Creek north of the bridge along Bass Lake Road in the Municipality of Trent Lakes, about 45 kilometres north of Peterborough and 13 kilometres north of neighbouring Bobcaygeon in the City of Kawartha Lakes.
The ministry says around that time one of the swans was shot and killed.
“There is no open season for hunting trumpeter swans,” stated Andrew Chambers, the ministry’s strategic development and issues management coordinator — enforcement branch. “Trumpeter swans mate for life.”
Conservation officer Jessica Junkin tells Global News the swan was recovered and is now in the possession of conservation officers.
According to the Nature Conservancy of Canada, the trumpeter swan — the largest swan in the world and native to Canada — was one of the first species added to Canada’s inaugural list of endangered species in the late 1970s. The bird was removed from Canada’s list of endangered species in 1996.
“It’s not unusual to see trumpeter swans here (in Trent Lakes),” said Junkin
Anyone with information on the incident is asked to contact the ministry’s tips line at 1-877-TIPS-MNR (847-7667) or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS or stopcrimehere.ca.