Shocking footage has surfaced showing a man lifting a swan from the water and raising it over his head in a disturbing Australia Day act in Western Australia.<\/p>\n
The video, shared on social media, showed the man diving into the Mandurah Estuary from a boat, before he grabbed the black swan by the legs.<\/p>\n
The incident has been condemned by WA Seabird Rescue, a not-for-profit rescue group.<\/p>\n
‘Here in the Mandurah estuary, we do have a large population of black swans,’ volunteer Rachel Olsen told The West Australian.<\/p>\n
‘They are very humanised, so unfortunately, people feed them, which means they often come up to the boat.’<\/p>\n
She said the swan appeared distressed in the footage.<\/p>\n
‘Two swans had approached the boat, and one of the blokes jumped from the boat onto the swan,’ she said.<\/p>\n
‘The swan tried to get away, he picked it up by the legs and held it above his head, and all his friends cheered.’<\/p>\n
Ms Olsen and other volunteers were dismayed by the act, considering the work they do year-round to assist the animals.<\/p>\n
‘He let it go, thankfully, but, it’s a pretty easy way to damage a swan \u2014 there is no reason to be interfering with them like that,’ she said.<\/p>\n
Ms Olsen said incidents involving wildlife worsen over public and school holiday periods.<\/p>\n
She urged Aussies to keep their distance from the birds and refrain from feeding them.<\/p>\n
Not-for-profit workers said their call-outs typically related to birds accidentally caught on hooks or entangled in fishing lines.<\/p>\n
The RSPCA said it was looking into the allegations.<\/p>\n
‘RSPCA WA had received a report about an alleged incident involving a swan on the Mandurah estuary and is investigating,’ a spokesperson said.<\/p>\n