THE first Bewick’s swan of the season has set off for the Arctic, signalling spring is near in the UK.
Leho arrived at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust in Wisbech, Cambs, in December but begun the 1,500-mile trip to Russia for his summer roost at 7am yesterday.
The tracked bird was in Germany by the afternoon.
The swans shelter here over winter but return to Russia to breed.
At this stage of the year, swans begin preparing for the tough journey ahead by resting, feeding and making practice runs.
Julia Newth, principal ecosystem health monitor at WWT, said: "The build up to final departure can be prolonged, involving resting, some last minute feeding and various dummy runs.
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"But Leho obviously felt fit and ready and that the time was right to head back to the breeding grounds for another summer in the tundra."
Every year, Bewick's swans fly to the UK to shelter for the winter, returning to arctic Russia to breed every spring.
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