Unfortunately for people, swans are really protective of their nests, territory and young during mating season. Fortunately, if they were not, we would not have cygnets. In any case, something happened to turn this bird against women and children. You cannot move the eggs without killing the eggs. The female will just abandon the eggs.

The best case scenario for all concerned is to get some fencing and build a secure pen (secure at the top and bottom so predators cannot enter from below or above the pen). Build a pen 1/2 in water and 1/2 on land with at least a 10 foot perimeter from around the nest so that humans cannot poke or throw something onto the nest. Add a feeder inside the pen.

Keep the cygnets and adults in the pen until the young birds are approximately 10 weeks of age which will give them a better chance of survival. At 1-3 weeks, someone is going to have to enter the pen to get the cygnets so they can be pinioned (kept from flying) which is typically the law for most states dealing with captive swans.

If you do not pen the swans, someone will intentionally kill the male just to get rid of him. If you do not pen the swans, then you need to capture both swans, forget the cygnets and get them relocated to an area away from kids. Having people access the nest is the problem with the situation, not the bird, but it is too late if the bird has become so aggressive that he is attacking people. He and his mate will do fine in an all adult community with limited interaction with people.

We do not know of anyone in the Atlanta area. Check with Bob from Knox Swans (Indiana) to see if he will take the birds. If you can find a home, but no one to help capture the birds, contact us back and we can get a team to Atlanta to help you. This will entail travel expenses, but we can get a rescue team to you. We would rather see the birds relocated than something happen to the adult parents, even if it means sacrificing the young. If the parents are killed, it won't matter if the cygnets hatch because they will not survive.

Good luck and let us know if we can help. The Regal Swan