In recent years, we’ve seen a big increase in the numbers of swans across the country. So some people feel that swans are becoming a danger to other river life. To answer this question, here is Paul from the Salmon and Trout Association. What happens is the swans come along and in deep water, they just graze on it, that’s no problem. It’s quite resilient and it’ll come back. The problem is in low water, they’ll eat it right down to the roots and they’ll kill it off. The problem here is more (that there is) not enough water in the river. Although it’s difficult to believe that today with all this flood water coming down. That’s the real issue. We need more water in the river to provide the depth for fish and birds to coexist side by side. Let’s hear from Graham who works for the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds, RSPB. The amount of water being taken out of the system is unsustainable, and also the amount of pollutants from washing achines and from farmland run-off coming into these rivers are also causing problems. So yes, let’s look at the problems swans are causing, but let’s look at the much bigger environmental picture too. That is historically the case, but these days all swans are protected under the wildlife and countryside act.