The much discussed Morses Pond swan convention, including upwards of 80 birds in April, has started to dwindle, though there remain far more than the usual handful.

swans on Morses Pond — (Photo courtesy of Fred Breimyer)

When we swung by earlier this month and took the less-than-close-up photos below, there were still 40-plus in the fleet.

We’ve been meaning to post about this, but had been doing the rounds with various animal experts to try to first get an explanation. Theories we’ve seen in local online forums have included that the swans lose their flight feathers in the spring and congregate to have strength in numbers. Others surmised that word got out that the sub-surface vegetation at Morses Pond was a delicious feast ahead of the weed harvester coming through. And still others pondered whether recent geomagnetic happenings might have played a role.

We started our inquiry by asking the town’s animal control officer, who figured had been hit up by other residents about this phenomenon. She responded: “Unfortunately I do not have an answer for the sudden increase in swans at Morses Pond. I would highly recommend reaching out to Division of Fisheries and Wildlife.”

So I did. Mass Wildlife checked with their ornithologist and replied “We don’t have any specifics to offer, but it is a non-breeding flock, and may be attracted to a food source in the area.”

I also hit up David Cohen, the town’s Department of Public Works director, in mid-May. I figured their weed harvester, which started up about a week into May, might have a few more obstacles to navigate than usual.

“The swans are a mystery to us,” Cohen wrote back. “Have never seen that many and we counted over 80 of them!”

Cohen’s team found the water fowl to mainly be hanging out, not nesting or exhibiting any aggressive behavior.

Now we’ll see how many stick around for beach season.