Starving swans rescued from ice on Somerset Levels

Twenty-one swans have been rescued from freezing conditions on a waterway on the Somerset Levels, but 10 have been found dead on the ice.

Volunteers from Secret World Wildlife Rescue captured the birds, which were starving or stuck in the ice on the South Drain.

Animal care manager Sara Cowan said the swans could not find food because the ground and the water were frozen.

She said they had been put in a pen and would be fed until the weather eased.

"With the big freeze nothing has thawed and everything is really struggling now," she said.

"The swans are having terrible problems. They're flying around trying to find their waterways, but everything's just white and they're coming down on anything.

"We've had three on the hard shoulder of the M5 in the last two days.

"Once it's all defrosted they can come back down, but for now we will look after them."