The Best Methods For Humanely Deterring Swans From Your Outdoor Living Space

In North America, you may come across three types of swans, including mute, tundra, and trumpeter swans. These large birds are fascinating to watch from a distance, but they're not such a welcome sight in your outdoor living spaces. The problem with swans is they can become aggressive, territorial, and destructive. Once they have found a space they feel safe to eat, take shelter, or breed in, it can be challenging to encourage them to leave. The good news is there are numerous humane methods to keep swans out of your yard, garden, swimming pool, and other outdoor living spaces, including those involving creating physical, visual, and auditory deterrents.

First, though, it is important that you never feed swans. It can be tempting to give waterfowl like swans small bits of bread or other food items. Not only may this harm the birds, but it will also give swans the impression that your property is a reliable source of sustenance, and they may be more likely to hang around and be a nuisance. Removing artificial sources of food is the first waterfowl control method experts generally recommend. Additionally, you should take care to remove all food items from backyard cookouts or picnics so that swans don't eat the leftovers. 

Unfortunately, food handouts aren't the only reasons why swans might inhabit your yard. If you continue to have swan visits, it may be time to consider installing barriers to deter them from entering your outdoor spaces. The first option may consist of shrubs, hedges, or other large vegetation. Ideally, these should be planted in rows to decrease open spaces between them so swans don't have a solid visual of your yard and may be more wary of entering. While not 100% effective, you can also try the same technique around ponds to help deter swans out of water sources that may be on your property. 

Fencing is another type of barrier that may possibly deter swans from your yard. When choosing the right backyard fencing material, you'll want to consider one tall enough may discourage adult swans from bringing their young into your outdoor area. To deter waterfowl, the general recommendation is a wire fence of at least 3 feet tall. Just keep in mind that since swans can fly, barriers may only do so much in preventing a particularly eager bird from hopping a fence or hedge line. As such, it's best to implement fencing that's fully enclosed, so they can't even fly in. If that's not an option, standard fencing barriers may work best when combined with humane scare tactics.

Despite your best efforts to place barriers around your outdoor living spaces, swans and other large birds may be determined to enter your yard, patio, or garden. In such cases, it may be time to employ other humane swan deterrent methods. One option is to use loud noises to scare the swans and hopefully prevent them from coming back onto your property. Examples include whistles, electronic alarm sounds, or even pre-recorded distress sounds from other swans. Before you employ the use of loud noises though, make sure you don't need a permit in your area to do so. If in doubt, contact your local county officials. 

Aside from loud noises, swans may also steer clear of certain visual elements in your outdoor spaces that they might consider dangerous. Dogs are perhaps the most effective deterrents in this regard, as having a pet makes it less likely you'll have pests in your home in general. Setting up a scarecrow in your yard or garden can also help, as well as strategically placing mylar ribbons or balloons around any barriers you have. These strategies work best when used with other methods of swan control, such as fencing. If problems persist with swans despite not feeding them, putting up barriers, and employing scare tactics, consider contacting a wildlife professional for help.