Swans run down in Minnesota’s Wright County, DNR asking for information from the public

Monticello, Minn. — The Minnesota DNR’s Law Enforcement Division is seeking information regarding who may have purposely used a vehicle to run down and kill five trumpeter swans – two adults and three juveniles – along Clementa Ave. NW, just south of County Road 39, in Wright County.

DNR Conservation Officer Trent Seamans said the incident occurred at about 10 a.m. on Friday, Aug. 2, in Silver Creek Township, which is located between the cities of Monticello, Maple Lake, and Clearwater.

The Wright County Sheriff’s Office took the initial report of the incident, but, Seamans said, several COs are conducting the investigation in the area patrolled by CO Clint Fitzgerald, who was out of the area conducting training when the incident took place.

“Right now we’re looking for information to build the case,” Seamans said earlier this week.

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Vehicle tire tracks at the scene indicated a southbound vehicle swerved off the paved portion of the roadway and struck the swans, according to Seamans. He said stop signs at the intersection of County Road 39 and Clementa would suggest the vehicle wasn’t traveling at a speed at which a collision with the swans could not have been avoided. And, he added, no one reported to law enforcement that they’d struck the swans with their vehicle.

“They couldn’t have been going more than 20 to 30 miles per hour,” Seamans said. “It’s just the totality of everything (that indicates the act was intentional).”

Seamans said there are ponds on both sides of Clementa Avenue at the site of the dead birds, and local residents are aware that several swans use the ponds and ditches on both sides of the roadway, sometimes crossing from one side to the other. While the area isn’t within his work station, he said he’s passed by the area and was also familiar with the local swan population.

Seamans said there appear to be three trumpeters that weren’t injured or killed and that remain in the area.

According to Seamans, trumpeter swans in Minnesota are protected at both the federal and state levels. Recent state legislation increased the restitution value of a swan illegally taken to $2,500. Further, other recent legislation increased restitution in the case of “malicious intent” in illegally killing a swan to $5,000 apiece, he added.

Seamans said the investigation is ongoing, and COs are seeking information from the public about the incident.

Information may be reported by calling the TIP hotline at 1-800-652-9093. The DNR also has an app through which information may be provided anonymously. Find it here.

For more information about Turn In Poachers, visit here. TIP rewards can reach up to $1,000, Seamans said.

Per a report in the Aug. 16, 2024, edition of Outdoor News, state conservation officers in the Fosston area of northwestern Minnesota were seeking information regarding the person who may have used a vehicle to strike and kill nine mallard ducks along a roadway near that city.