Two weeks ago the City of Orlando released two male black-necked swans into Lake Eola, in the hopes of finding a mate for the widowed, “I don’t need no man,” Queenie – who’s mate had been killed by a tragic popcorn-overdose accident.
Don’t feed swans popcorn you guys, seriously.
But as we learned yesterday afternoon, not all courtships end in Netflix and chilling and one of the males died suddenly.
The two Illinois-raised bucks were living in a special sectioned-off corner of Lake Eola to let them, and the other 50 swans in the lake, get used to each other. They still hadn’t been released into the general population when it was discovered that the smaller of the two has died and while the cause of death is still up in the air, all signs point towards a jealous/territorial swan.
Editor’s Note: Read about our City’s most infamously amazing Swan Sith Lord, Billy the Swan, HERE.
City Hall and Parks staff believe that Queenie and “Big Boy,” as Commissioner Patty Sheehan has named him, will most-likely be hitting it off very soon and bringing forth their own brood to reset the cosmic balance that is the swan ecosystem in Lake Eola.
There are five types of swans at Lake Eola (as long as they’re living or don’t run away to other lakes) at all times; Trumpeter, Australian Black, Black Neck, Royal Mute, and Whooper.
Individuals looking to contribute to the City’s swan care program can contribute HERE.
