# Why is this swan mauling this tiny gosling?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-swan-mauling-this-tiny-gosling/659827>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [June 1, 2013, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-swan-mauling-this-tiny-gosling/659827 "2013-06-01T01:04:31Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\
**Post date:** [June 1, 2013, 9:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-is-this-swan-mauling-this-tiny-gosling/659827/21 "2013-06-01T21:55:29Z")

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> [@astro](#):
>
> I’ll take your word for it [but wiki](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Swan)seems to indicate that they only eat fairly “small aquatic animals” in addition to plant material. I’m thinking things much smaller than a gosling.

[Ashland Park swans killing, eating ducklings](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=20000805&id=tlZWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wusDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2808,1025231)

[Crazy swan kills and eats duckling (almost)](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=20000805&id=tlZWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wusDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2808,1025231)  
These swans just attacked or killed goslings or ducklings without apparently trying to eat them:

[Swan drowns duckling](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=20000805&id=tlZWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wusDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2808,1025231) (in this case a Coscoroba Swan)

[Killer swan](http://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1310&dat=20000805&id=tlZWAAAAIBAJ&sjid=wusDAAAAIBAJ&pg=2808,1025231) (attacks gosling without killing it)  
Smaller waterfowl sometimes eat ducklings:

[Duck eats duckling](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pNYq0bp0uTY)  
Ok, swans probably mostly kill ducklings and goslings (and sometimes even adult ducks) out of territoriality rather than to eat them, but this isn’t unusual behavior. And while ducklings are a bit larger than their usual fare, swans are quite capable of eating one (and sometimes do).

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