St Heliers Swan Controversy Dismantled

In late June, early July of 2026, I was approached by a journalist, who - having stopped to enjoy the swans on her way home from work - had observed my interactions with them and wanted to know my story. How is it that they come in en masse when they see me, and seem to know me so well. 

Over the following weeks, Jane and Cameron spent time with me to capture that relationship. The week it was due to be published, I had attended a public local residents meeting as I had heard that there was anger toward the swans presence in St Heliers. What was said at that meeting was so distressing to me that I had to leave the building. This rhetoric, and the points being raised, were woven into the final 
NZ Herald digital and physical articles and videos. 

Included in the interviews were the relevant representatives from Department of Conservation, Council Biodiversity, Fish & Game and a Professor from the University of Auckland. All successfully debunked the myths and 'concerns'. All asserted there would be no culls, that taking a life was not - and should not be - done unless absolutely necessary for high level issues that St Heliers residents' mere dislike did not meet, and confirmed that the long standing waste water and pollution issues had long pre-existed and lay squarely at the feet of the human species. 

The response was an immediate primarily local organising of residents, largely on social media, to hurl further myths, misinformation, deny the experts positions and to generally find ways to project their anger onto myself and the swans. On a practical level, this resulted in an increase in abuse toward the swans and public efforts to harass, terrify and disturb them as often as possible, including allowing an encouraging their dogs to run at, chase, and in at least one instance that I have been personally made aware of, to maul the swans. 

For context, at the time this was unfurling, a large number of the swans - primarily a pod of young and juveniles under the age of 3 - were going through their annual moult, a fact made obvious by the feathers on the beach that could easily be seen by any member of the public using the beach. I observed in multiple instances very small, and often dramatically undernourished, swans furiously paddling in the ocean to try and evade capture by dogs who were easily gaining on them. It was absolutely devastating to watch those who could not fly and were rapidly tiring in the open ocean conditions, while the dog owners stood on the beach watching and doing nothing to change the outcome. Despite my repeated please for them to call their dogs back, I was met only with expressions of delight at what was transpiring or responses that the swans 'shouldn't' be there or that they weren't 'wanted' there.  

One comment on a Neighbourly post was so wilfully vile that it almost brought me to tears: 
"I saw a black Labrador chasing them today. Made me smile. Hope it gave them a fright." - "Karen Deynzer from Mission Bay"

All animals suffer extreme distress when they are victim to attacks by dogs and abuses by humans. St Heliers beach had been the location of at least 4 fatal maulings that season (the last one a deliberate release of a dog at the swans) and I had watched 2 maulings the previous year at nearby Tahuna Torea. One we saved, the other we didn't.  To hear someone say that they smiled when witnessing something both preventable and malicious was beyond comprehension and spoke volumes about the person who posted it, and the eager audience of like-minded individuals who choose to remain wilfully ignorant of the facts, science, laws and Rights of animals in NZ.   

Their only crime was to have tried to live in one of the few areas where there is a fresh water source they can access for only a few hours a day, but which serves as a critical resource determining life or death. 

NZ Herald Digital - 10 July, 2026

NZ Herald - Weekend Herald - 11 July, 2026

Radio NZ - The Panel - 22 July, 2026 (starts 6m52s)

Seven Sharp - 10 August, 2026

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