New York Swan Faye Stolen and Cooked, 4 Cygnets Rescued from 3 Arrested Teens

Faye, a mute swan native to New York, was taken and fried, but her four young swans were saved. Three teenagers were charged as the offenders.

Stolen Swans from New York

Five swans were taken over the weekend from the Manlius Swan Pond, according to a statement on Facebook from the Town of Manlius Police Department. In contrast to Faye, the adored female swan, who was slain, four of the baby birds were found.

Paul Whorrall, the mayor of Manlius, said that the mother swan had been eaten. When reporting the teenagers' crime, Whorrall showed grief.

Police reported the swans missing on Saturday, but authorities weren't contacted until Monday, according to the AP News.

Two of the baby swans were discovered at a Salina store by a concerned individual after word of the missing swans spread, said to Manlius police Sgt. Ken Hatter.

After one of the suspects who worked at the business confessed to the crime, Manlius police were able to recover the two young swans from the store and discovered the other two cygnets at a suspect's house in Syracuse, which is about 10 miles northwest of the town.

The three teenagers were accused of grand larceny, criminal mischief, conspiracy, and criminal trespass, according to a press statement from the police department that was forwarded to USA TODAY.

Due to their youth, two of the suspects, 16 and 17, were turned over to their parents, according to the police. The 18-year-old third suspect is in custody awaiting arraignment.

Faye: Stolen and Cooked

When the young swans are mature enough to survive on themselves, which will be in a few weeks, and are now under the care of a biologist, they will be released back into the pond.

Faye, according to Hatter, was given to a relative to cook. He said that the aunt cooked it when they took it back to her home.

Swan Rules in New York

In the state, it is forbidden to hunt swans.

According to Syracuse.com, in 2010 the biologist Michael Bean gave the municipality of Manlius Swans Faye and Manny for its swan pond. when a criminal damaged Manny and Faye's first clutch of eggs in April of that year.

Swans are a specialty of Manlius, according to Whorrall. Swans have lived in this village for well over a century, he claimed.

The event is being looked into by the Manlius Police Department, the Syracuse Police Department, and the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation Police, USA Today reports.

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Mute Swans

The biggest bird species in New York is the mute swan, which has a wing span of over 7 feet and an average adult weight of 20 to 25 pounds. Both sexes have an orange bill over a black facial patch with a fleshy bump on the forehead. These features on their faces set mute swans apart from other swan species seen in New York State.

Males, or cobs, often have significantly bigger bodies and knobs than females or pens. It is exceedingly challenging to distinguish between the sexes despite these distinctions. At hatching, the cygnets of mute swans are either gray or white, as per data from NewYork State Department of Environmental Conservation.