'Killer' swan attacks Illinois caretaker until he drowns

[NNN0LHI]

http://www.latimes.com/news/nation/nationnow/la-na-nn-killer-swan-attacks-chicago-man-until-he-drowns-20120416,0,1669472.story

By Rene Lynch

April 16, 2012, 8:39 a.m.

Swans have a seemingly placid demeanor, and their monogamous mating habits have long made them a symbol of lasting love. But the creatures -- generally snowy white, with long graceful necks and a black "mask" around their eyes -- are territorial and can be quite aggressive when threatened. This aggression makes them good at driving off geese; it can also lead to tragedy.

Anthony Hensley was a 37-year-old married father of two who worked for a company that uses dogs and swans to shoo pesky geese from properties in the area. Hensley had taken to a kayak Sunday morning to check on the swans in a Des Plaines-area pond when one of the larger birds turned on him, the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

Cook County sheriff’s investigators believe Hensley either got too close to the swan or the swan’s nesting area, the Sun-Times said. Hensley rolled off his kayak and landed in the water, and the swan kept up its relentless attack.

The Sun-Times reports that the swan continued to pursue Hensley as he tried to swim to shore. Hensley was submerged when emergency workers arrived, and an autopsy found that he died from drowning near the Bay Colony condominiums in unincorporated Des Plaines.

[dipsydoodle]

1. Never piss a swan off.

We've got them where I go fishing locally in old gravel pits here in the UK and we're very careful not to upset them

[CTyankee]

2. You would think this guy knew that. I don't know much about water fowl but I do know that

swans are unpleasant creatures for whatever reason. Beautiful, but unpleasant.

This is so tragic...I feel sorry for his family.

[virgogal]

3. Some years ago a friend had her arm broken by a swan. After reading this I

realize she was quite lucky.

[Hassin Bin Sober]

4. I was at a friend's house in the area of the OP tragedy when I heard about the poor man's demise.

My friend told me their maintenance man in the hospital he works in was beat up pretty bad, to the point of hospitalization, by a pack of swans.

I never knew. I remember being chased by geese(?) when I was a kid. I probably was provoking them.

This thread was, well......

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=105x4883421

[Kaleva]

5. The swan was standing its ground.