A CYGNET had been brutally and fatally injured after getting caught in a boat propeller on a Nantwich canal.

The distressed animal was injured, and was found by a member of the public on Wednesday, August 2.

Richard Palmer, who found the cygnet, took it to nearby Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre, on London Road, Nantwich, but after examination by a vet, the decision was taken to put the animal down to prevent further suffering.

The skin had been ripped away from the top of the animal’s body, and the injury was deemed too severe to reverse.

Mr Palmer owns a boat at nearby Middlewich and has kept boats for 28 years.

He said: “The cygnet’s mum and dad swam away with his six siblings, and I couldn’t leave him where he was. He was in no fit state.

“I have seen a number of times over the years swans which have suffered as a result of getting caught in boat propellers. People who hire boats do not necessarily realise how much force a boat can have while on a canal, particularly narrowboats which have more suction than a cruiser.

“To get in this state the person who hit the cygnet likely didn’t slow down or stop the engine. I think this happens more than people realise.”

Lee Stewart, manager at Stapeley Grange, added: “It is likely that whoever hit the swan may have known that they had run over something and would have seen it - yet they still didn’t stop to look and help.

“This death could have been easily prevented if people paid attention to speed limits on the canal and slowed down. Swans are agile birds and they would easily move out of the way of a boat in time.

“I would like to thank the kind member of the public who stopped and helped the cygnet. Sadly this was not a happy ending, but at least the cygnet was not left to die in pain at the side of the canal.”