General News
4 June, 2023
Stewart swans around for corn and water
By CHRIS EARL HIS name is Stewart ... a demanding young chap with determination and a mind of his own. Time for consuming a daily diet of corn, water and lettuce signalled with a tapping of his beak on the cabin door of Boort Lakes Caravan Park...
By CHRIS EARL
HIS name is Stewart ... a demanding young chap with determination and a mind of his own.
Time for consuming a daily diet of corn, water and lettuce signalled with a tapping of his beak on the cabin door of Boort Lakes Caravan Park managers Wendy and Tim James.
A swan named Stewart who learnt to fly on Little Lake Boort trying to keep up with skiers in summer.
That’s when Stewart waddled back into the park where he was rescued as a grey and fluffy cygnet by Tim and Wendy last AFL Grand Final weekend.
“We found him abandoned in the park and I thought, we don’t know what to do with a swan,” said Wendy.
The small ball of infant feathers was adopted out to Vaughan and Tanya Toose who named him Stewart.
In the heat of summer, Stewart went wandering and returned to the lake.
Tanya put out the call around town that Stewart the swan was missing. She called Wendy who spotted Stewart back in the abode where he was rescued.
“So he’s stayed here ever since,” said Wendy. “He’s popular with park visitors and we even have special instructions we send out before check-in on his strict diet of water, corn and lettuce.
“Normally people would feed bread to the birds and swans but that’s not a good idea for swans because of the sugar it contains.
“Although we don’t think Stewart realises that he is swan. All the other black swans around the lake are ignored as he goes wandering during the day.”
Tim no longer has the need to set a waking alarm each morning.
“At daylight, there’s a knock on the door from Stewart - time for food,” Tim said. “And if there is a campfire in the park, he’s happy to sit nearby and watch.”
Wendy said: “People might think we’re crazy but Stewart is right at home and everyone loves him.”
“This park is where he started ... he wandered off and he just came back. It’s his home and we love having him around the park,” said Wendy between replenishing his bowl with more corn.