Overview
Management Options
Techniques used to manage Mute Swan conflicts are broken into 3 major
categories: husbandry methods, non-lethal methods, and lethal methods. These
categories are consistent with the hierarchical design that characterizes most
vertebrate integrated pest management (VIPM) programs. Under an VIPM program,
you first must identify the conflict and evaluate its seriousness, then you
review and evaluate the options that are available to relieve or permanently
solve that conflict. Then, based on the outcome of that assessment, you select
and apply the management strategies appropriate to the need, starting first
with the simple, inexpensive, and less invasive techniques, but moving on to
the more complex, expensive, or time demanding options where need dictates. A
general rule of thumb of an VIPM approach: lethal options generally are viewed
as methods of last resort, ones used only when all other methods prove
ineffective. Therefore, in this section, we present a review of options that
follow the IPM hierarchical approach.
Husbandry
Non-lethal Approaches
Lethal Approaches
Legal Considerations