LAKELAND, Fla. (WFLA) — Before the sun came up on Tuesday, boats hit Lake Morton for Lakeland’s 40th Annual Swan Roundup.
Parks & Recreation employees carefully gather the swans and got them ready for their annual veterinary check-up.
The swans will be confined in large holding pens overnight Tuesday, and then get their annual wellness examinations with My Pet’s Animal Hospital Wednesday morning.
Swans will be given a physical, some will be given inoculations, and babies will be examined and tagged.
Once they are given a clean bill of health, the swans will be released back into Lake Morton.
The original swans on Lake Morton were donated by Queen Elizabeth in 1957. As Lakeland’s swan flock grew, it became paramount to give the regal birds an annual health check so the Swan Roundup began in 1980 and has continued every year since then.
This year the City of Lakeland estimates there are more than 80 swans in Lake Morton after several successful nesting seasons.
The city plans to sell around 20 of the swans. The Swan Sale will happen Oct. 29.
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