Lincoln Swan Project

The Mute Swans caught in and around Lincoln are being ringed as part of a research project to monitor their ecology, behaviour, health and welfare. By ringing them the Lincoln Swan Project hope to be able to keep track of their movements and monitor individual birds. Two rings are put on each bird – a metal British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) ring with a unique number which will last for a lifetime, and a plastic ring with a unique colour and code combination, with three or four letters and numbers, which can be read at a distance without having to recapture the bird.

In Lincoln, we use a yellow plastic ring with a combination of four letters and numbers. In other areas, different colour and character combinations are used, for example swans in the north west region are blue, those in Cheshire are green, and those in Worcester are orange. Approximately 400 swans have been ringed in Lincoln since September 2017. Swans from Lincoln have been reported as moving to Yorkshire, the Lincolnshire coast, and Cheshire.

Mute swans face several threats, such as lead poisoning, collision with overhead wires, and avian influenza, and the reporting of dead birds is also very important. If you find a dead bird with a visible colour ring, please report the bird to us as you would with a live bird, but do tell us the bird is dead, and any obvious signs of what might have killed it (e.g. under power lines). Please avoid directly touching any dead swans. If you see a sick or injured swan, please contact Yorkshire Swan and Wildlife Rescue Hospital on 01757 544554 (9am to 6pm daily). or the RSPCA on 0300 1234 999.

Any swan sightings can be reported through our App, which enables you to submit your location while you are watching the bird, as well as send us photos or the bird/ring, and let us know the size of the flock the bird is in, and whether it is breeding. This is really valuable data for the project, and gives us important data on behaviour, longevity and movements. You can sign us for the App here: