BIRDS AND THE BEES



We eat chickens, ducks and geese, but how come swans evade our dinner plates? L.J. Lev, Yellowknife, Canada Because they belong to the monarch. Get caught with a roast swan in your oven and the penalty is no doubt of a medieval nature. Mark Power, Dublin Ireland Because all Swans in this country are the property of the crown and you would require a special licence to kill one. Mike, Brighton UK Because they have been protected for so long, that eating them has gone out of favour. Like deer, they were once hunted to near extinction. To preserve them they were made - with a few exceptions - property of the crown. Peter Brooke, Newmachar UK Because all swams in England belong to the Queen so catching one would constitute theft. In Ireland the daughters of Lir were turned into swans so you would wish to avoid eating these beautiful maidens. Natasha, Oxfordshire UK Swans used to be eaten by the aristocracy up to Tudor/Elizabethan ages. They ceased to be a popular dish when all swans in England were declared the property of the monarch, so catching one to eat could result in a short (or not so short) stay in the tower. Two livery companies have been granted a special dispensation to own swans, hence the annual 'swan-upping' sessions. During these, representatives of the two companies are allowed one day to catch swans and mark them with either one or two notches on their beaks. Any unmarked birds remain the property of the monarch. Susie Burlace, London The eating of swans is a royal perogative and up until relatively recently killing one of them was a treasonable offence. The queen has an official Keeper of the Queens swans (constable or something). For a good recipe, get hold of the hampton court palace royal tudor kitchens cook book. (I reccomend the roast lemon salad.) Ben Davies, London One of the reasons that swans are not eaten is probably to do with the fact that swans are soverign property and therefore may well fall under the guise of treason or another archaeic law still punishable by death. Tim, Teddington UK My father once ate swan - it had flown into a power line and been picked up by a friend of his who was a chef in a pub. He said it was inedibly tough and greasy despite having been cooked by an expert. Perhaps you would need to hang it so long to make it chewable that it would be too rotten to eat. Chris Young, Sheffield UK In England, you cannot eat swan for two reasons: they are protected by the Queen and they may contain lead. Carol Buckley, La Jolla USA It's not strictly true that the Queen owns all swans in Britain. The Swan Upping ceremony which takes place every July takes a head-count of all the mute swans on the Thames and marks them for ownership either by the Crown or by the Vintners' and Dyers' Livery Companies, which were granted their rights of ownership by the Crown in the fifteenth century. Technically, the Crown owns all unmarked mute swans in open water, and the Queen only exercises her ownership rights on some stretches of the Thames and its tributaries. Other varieties of swan (Bewick's, Whooper etc.) aren't included in this. My theory as to why we don't eat swans is because they're too difficult to domesticate and the wild ones are too rare to kill. Leo Hickey, Barking UK If you are invited to a feast at St John's College Cambridge you may be served swan by the same royal favour that allows the choristers to wear scarlet. Charlie Hartill, London UK The penalty for taking a swan used to be seven years transportation! In mid July, on the River Thames, the 900 year old ceremony of 'Swan Upping' takes place. In earlier times, this was to mark ownership of the swans, which was split between the Crown, and the association of Dyers and the association of Vintners. The swans would have their beaks nicked, I forget what denoted what, but the royal swans would remain unmarked. It still takes place today, with all the rich pageantry you would expect. However, nowadays it is more of a census and welfare check for the birds, which are weighed and ringed. Mark, Aylesbury UK Aparently swan can be eaten at St John's College, Cambridge. Jenny Maresh, Cambridge UK Unfortunately all the answers have been incorrect.The Crown i.e the Queen has the rights on certain sections of the Thames. In addition two City of London Companies Vintners and Dyers have rights but most of the swans visiting Britain have no claimants of ownership. Please enlighten Mr Lev in Canada. Jack Hill, St Albans England UK My late husband saw the male swan in our local park kill one of its own young (by drowning it) when the youngster refused to leave the pond of its birth. He removed the body from the pond to prevent children from seeing it and getting upset, then thought, "Why waste it?" and produced a swan feast for his father and some friends (I was abroad at the time). He prepared it using a recipe for goose, and all who joined in the repast declared it to be like very tender beef and delicious. (He assumed Her Majesty wouldn't want a dead swan of unknown origins sent to her.) Laurie Keller, Bedford UK According to the Bible (Leviticus), it is forbidden to eat swans or other unclean fowls and birds of prey. This may give a more cultural background, instead of the purely national reason of monarchy ownership that has frequently been given. However, people in our culture eat shellfish and pork, and these are also things we are told are unclean in Leviticus. I know that in Alaska, hunters with permits can shoot Tundra Swans. Many swans migrate through the Pacific Northwest of the US, but I've never heard of hunters in Oregon shooting swans. I think it has to do with their "ornamental value"- they've been considered more prized for their beauty than their tough meat. Although there are well-known Celtic and Teutonic myths regarding shapeshifting into humans and such, I wonder if this had an effect on whether people ate swans during medieval times, for example? I don't know if it did. LM Harms, Portland, OR USA Carl Orff's "Carmina Burana" features a scene where a swan is being roasted on a spit , and lamenting his fate - since this piece is based on mediaeval texts dating back to to around 1300, it suggests that eating swans might once have been common. Graham Cox, High Wycombe, UK Clearly, it's because swans can & will break your leg with their wings! Did no one else read the replies to Carl Tyler's swan query, in particular Eleanor's? I have vindicated her friend. Susan Cho, Baltimore, MD US The tough meat thing is most certainly not true. I have had swan before and it is very tender, half-way between beef and pork. I think (in the case) that it was fried by the power line might explain the toughness of the meat that time. Ronald, Hong Kong, China My theory of why we can't eat Swans in the UK is simply this:- You will find that the more beautiful the bird the better it tastes ie.. Ugly turkey = too dry, average looking chicken = bland, handsome duck = succulent, as we all know swans are the more glamorous of the flock and therefore should be the yum-diddly-scrumptious of them all. When the Monarchy back in the 1700s first had the satisfaction of blessing there tastebuds with this fine 'bird' there diet and way of life was turned upside down, they started to fear that the peasants would find out how scrummy they were and sell them at morrisons on sat mornings. It is for this reason and this reason alone that the Swan Act 1788 was passed "...No Swan in this land shall be passed through any citizens mouth (or other entry to the body), if found doing so you shall be sentenced to death by pecking (this is not pleasant, the only person who is able to eat Swans to this day are those who own fancy hats or shiny boots). Kate Mate, Swansea Wales Does the queen herself eat swan now? Zillah , Norwich Engand It's because they would take up too much space in the supermarket and there'd be little room left for chicken, which is much more profitable. Plus, they bear grudges and if you try to catch one, all the other swans hunt your family down and break their arms with their wings. Probably. Matt, London, UK All these answers are untrue. The real reason for us not eating swans is because they are impossible to kill due to their bullet proof feathers. And if you did kill them i.e by slitting their neck in a 'Z' shape like Zorro then they would simply come back alive once reaching 165 degrees C in the oven. This is all scientifically proven by top scientists. You can see their research on www.meatspin.com. Also I think the Queen might own them. Marge Balls, Nottingham, UK We don't (or shouldn't) eat swans because they are sacred; their appearance divulges their station. Karl Natanson, Ann Arbor, USA Not all Swans are property of the Queen only Mute Swans. It is not Treason to kill a swan and it doesn't carry the death penalty. Swans probably aren't eaten because of the above myths surrounding them. However they aren't very nice and taste a bit fishy. Alison, Guildford, Surrey As Alison says, above, only Mute swans are protected so if you do get hold of a swan you would always use the Old Elizabethan Recipe for Baked Swan. To bake a Swan Scald it and take out the bones, and parboil it, then season it very well with Pepper, Salt and Ginger, then lard it, and put it in a deep Coffin of Rye Paste with store of Butter, close it and bake it very well, and when it is baked, fill up the Vent-hole with melted Butter, and so keep it; serve it in as you do the Beef-Pie Jim Bonner, Cheltenham Glos The meat is reportedly stringy but with a nice flavour. Swans were indeed forbidden as food due to being owned by the crown, and this resulted in a taboo that means they just aren't thought of as food (being relatively rare is another matter - after all farming them would increase their numbers). So it's much like the curious way that people in Britain and Ireland don't eat horse, which is a tasty low-fat meat, but just not thought of as food. Jon Hanna, Dublin Ireland Swans ARE protected by law, and not just by an ancient one. The Wild Creatures and Forest Law Act (1971)consolidates the Queen's rights to specific Swans in specific locations only, but other fairly recent laws also protect all wild swans and their eggs from being hunted or harassed by anyone, anywhere in the UK. Swans cannot therefore be farmed legally (because clipping their wings would be illegal) and catching/hunting them is also against the law. Butchers are hardly going to make a living from road kill or accidental electrification. In short, Swans are not eaten only because the legal supply is extremely limited. Geoff, Crewe UK All rubbish. I've eaten many a swan. I mean, who hasn't? Mark, Denver, Natanson, US I think the law protecting swans should be abolished. There are millions of the darned things, they are a public nuisance and frighten people. I would love to be able to go to the chip-shop and buy a swan-supper instead of a chicken supper! Stuart, Johnstone, Scotland The queen doesn't own all the swans, only the mute swans on the Thames. all the other swans are free swans owned by know one. the mute swans are eaten by the royal family and by fellows of st johns cambridge on june the 25th. they taste rather unpleasantly fishy unless they have been oat reared from birth Henry Walker, Reading UK I got attacked by one. What happens if you kill one in self defence? This one was really aggressive. Kirk, London, UK How in the name of the blessed Nigel does anybody, even someone dressed in funny clothes with a large hat covered in baubles, even dream of "owning" a wild animal ??? David French, Windsor UK Hang on, you can eat chickens?? Orlando Wind, Texas USA Mute swans are non native to our region and consequently are a threat to the chesapeake bay. The unregulated taking of mute swans is necessary to maintain the balance of this natural resource. So if they are smart they will stay on the other side of the ATLANTIC. However... they taste better than geese. Ben, Lancaster, PA usa You probably have eaten swan on many many occasions. A little research reveals that swan is near identical to other web-footed birds. The only true way to tell is to try to feed some to a swan (the swan will refuse to eat its own kind). Basically it takes swan to know swan. Juan, London, UK Most of the swans in England are free, they do not belong to anyone. The Queen only owns the MUTE swans. Apart from Royals, the only people allowed to eat swan are fellows of St. John's College, Cambridge on the 25th June. Swans have a fishy taste, although the best ones are fed on oats when they are young. The most common cause of death for swans is electrocution. Please dont perpetuate the myth about ALL Swans. John Morrell, Newcastle-upon-Tyne United Kingdom Swans have an antibody that is lethal to humans. duke , london canada I've nicked a swan or two to get by in leaner times. They taste somewhere between Bald Eagle and California Condor. Mark Wilkinson, Wylie, Texas U.S. What about an anonymous limerick? There was a young man of St John's Who wanted to bugger the swans, Said the loyal hall porter "Pray sir, take my daughter, The swans are reserved for the dons." Robert, Petworth UK Swan is delicious. So rich you will eat too much and get the runs. Patti, Fort Smith Canada



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