Swan Upping, King Charles' five-day event that takes over the River Thames, is a nearly thousand-year old British tradition. Here's a deeper look at the event and its history.

River Thames

Swan upping is an annual tradition on the River Thames in which volunteers travel upstream in wooden skiffs to conduct a census of mute swans. The practice, which began nearly 1,000 years ago as a means to claim swans for royal feasts, now serves a conservation purpose. Volunteers catch, weigh, measure, and tag the birds before releasing them, also checking for injuries often caused by fishing tackle and pollution.

The census provides valuable data on the health of the swan population and the river environment. Recent years have seen increased pollution and flooding, both affecting swan numbers. Despite these challenges, organizers hope that improved weather and ongoing conservation efforts will help the swan population recover.

Behind Swan Upping, the tradition that took over the River Thames

whether it's chasing a wheel of cheese, dancing around the maple or just having a spot of tea. English culture is steeped in tradition. This week, one custom dating back nearly 1000 years was on display on the River Thames. It's called Swan up it for five days. A flotilla of volunteers travel 79 miles upstream in traditional wooden skiffs to take a census of mute swans. When we see a family of swans, the head man in front a shout out all up and that's the signal we're going to have a swan catch. It's a catch but not a capture. After circling the boats around the swans, the volunteers raised the birds up by hand to be weighed seven is it seven measured and tagged before finally being released. Who's afraid of swans? Why you was Mariah down at Empting Court last Sunday and he nearly upsets a blooming pump when one of them blinking beaks comes nosing around your bits and pieces. The regal ritual originated to claim the birds for royal feast. But now it's quite the opposite. The swans are a protected species and many of them are considered property of the crown. So while this looks ceremonial, the mission here is conservation. We will measure them, weigh them and check them for any injuries. And that is one of the most important things we do because we have a lot of injuries from fishing tackle problems. The annual census also give scientists insight into the health of the river. We're finding more pollution issues than we've ever found before. We have oil problems from engine oil to diesel oil and swans get coated in this and then they all have to be washed off. So it is quite a task. The swan population is dropped off as flooding on the river becomes more prominent. The last few years we've been suffered quite late flooding and this year's we've had good weather. So we've started to notice you generally have a catch in the same reach prior to the flooding. Now we sort of feel like we're picking back up. So hopefully the numbers start to pick back up again. So with each swan recorded, the flotilla sails on hoping the next generation can take flight.

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