A black swan which turned up on the shores of Lough Neagh over the weekend may have escaped from a private collection experts say.

By Connla Young

connla@derrypost.com

The elegant black bird was spotted yesterday morning paddling with a group of whooper swans at a stretch of shoreline near Ballymaguigan.

With jet black feathers and a distinctive red beak the spectacular bird, which is native to the southern hemisphere, seemed at perfect ease with other swans as it searched for food at an isolated bay between Ballyronan and Toomebridge.

It wasn’t clear last night if the bird has escaped from a private collection or if it has flown into Ireland with a group of whooper swans which return annually to Lough Neagh from Iceland.

Usually found in Australia, the black swan is a protected species in that country.

Lough Neagh Wetlands Biodiversity Officer Seamus Burns said the swan may have originally come from a private collection.

“There has been a black swan knocking about this area for the last three years,” said Seamus. “This may be it back again or it may be a different one, it’s hard to know. The black swan hooks up with whoopers because they are its closest relatives.

“We are pretty sure in the past this bird didn’t migrate back to Iceland with the other whoopers. But it is very interesting that it has appeared back again this year.”