During the last weekend in June, a fight took place at RSPB Lochwinnoch.

The troublemaker was the disabled whooper swan who can be seen year round near the car park at Castle Semple Loch.

This swan has a wing injury that prevents it from returning to Iceland, for the breeding season, every spring.

This year a pair of mute swans nested on the Aird Meadow, close to the RSPB Visitor Centre.

This seemed to upset the whooper swan, and the fight between the whooper and the male mute swan was caught on CCTV camera.

Next day the mute swan was found dead.

The whooper swan was then seen harrying the female, who was doing her best to protect her two small cygnets.

We don’t know whether the lonely whooper swan wanted to adopt the cygnets, or wanted to drive away the whole family.

Staff at RSPB watched the situation for several hours, but when the swan family was driven close to the road they decided action was needed.

They rounded up the family and brought them to Hessilhead.

The family soon settled at the Rescue Centre, and the pen proved to be a good mother.

The cygnets grew well, and in recent weeks have been spending most of each day on a small pool at the centre.

Today they returned to the Aird Meadow.

The female swan led her cygnets along the channel, as if she was taking them on a guided tour.