Baby swans as well as other baby birds, do not have the necessary feathers to keep them warm and dry. If they became drenched, they were probably not only soaked to the bone, but were cold as well. In any case, a severe downpour with youngsters can have detrimental effects, especially if new parents have no idea how to keep them warm and dry. If they were too weak to right themselves, this was definitely a sign that they were too ill or something else was occuring that the parents knew was not good. Too much rain and inexperienced parents could have resulted in the nesting bowl to collapse and the cygnets drown because the nest was placed in a terrible location or the nest was not anchored and the nesting bowl not shored. Unfortunately, this is mother nature as tough as it is to watch. The Regal Swan