Arabic version: منقذون يسعون لإنقاذ فراخ البجع في بحيرة مكلارتي

According to ABC News, wildlife rescuers are mounting a community-led effort to save more than 50 vulnerable or abandoned black swan cygnets at rapidly drying Lake McLarty, about 90 kilometres south of Perth.

Rescue groups spent much of the day negotiating the terms of their operation with Western Australia’s Department of Biodiversity, Conservation and Attractions, which manages the lake. WA Seabird Rescue’s Rachel Olsen said the situation was urgent as foxes picked off abandoned cygnets.

Olsen said that, after an early visit to the site, water levels were down and only about 60 cygnets remained. She said some birds had been abandoned and rescuers needed to “scoop them all up”, warning that the cygnets could die within days because their parents had no choice but to leave them.

The department said wildlife rescuers were allowed to access the reserve. However, it said a larger event involving around 100 people could create additional public-safety risks that would need to be managed. DBCA said it was continuing to work with WA Seabird Rescue to enable volunteer wildlife rehabilitators to monitor and rescue cygnets.

Olsen said Lake McLarty was drying earlier than usual, concentrating swans in one area as food became scarce and making the young birds more vulnerable to foxes. She described the process as natural, but said it was one in which people could intervene.