Lakeland’s beautiful swans have been laying eggs and many of them have gone missing.
Lakeland has about 60 swans and they are the city’s symbol.
10 News talked to Lakeland spokesman Kevin Cook who says, “Swans are the icon of Lakeland. They’re on the city’s logo. We were given our first mating pair from Queen Elizabeth back in the ’40’s.”
Authorities report that for the past several weeks, someone has been swiping swan eggs. City officials think about 40 just-about-to-hatch eggs have been nabbed from nests.
The motive for stealing the swan eggs appears to be profit; Cook says swan eggs sell for about $150 and swan babies, or cygnets, go for $300.
To stop the theft, police have increased patrols around Lake Morton and Lake Wire and motion-activated cameras are also filming the activity at the lake.
Police also have asked the public to let them know if they see any swan eggs or babies for sale on the Internet or anywhere else.
