The Top 5 Birds On Campus

The sleek, the sexy and the down right cute.

There are a lot of pros to the University of Lincoln campus being based around an inland marina; the sparkling water when the sun is shining, the rustic canal boats moored outside, the proximity of Nando's. But nothing quite tops the diversity of the campus wildfowl. Here, we run down the top five birds* on campus, in reverse order.

*You thought this article was about what? That would be appallingly sexist, you must have been horrified. Look at these funny duck things until you feel better.

5. Coot

Undisputedly, the worst of the wildfowl. The coot has evil black feathers, blood-red eyes and a white featherless “shield” on its head, which is weird. It also gave rise to the unpleasant expression, “bald as a coot”, and its babies are, frankly, ridiculous.

4. Deathroy the Goose

A veritable campus celebrity, Deathroy even has his own Facebook page. And they don’t give those out to just anybody, you know.

When Deathroy briefly disappeared from campus at the end of November, panic ensued and rumours of a student-prank-gone-horribly-wrong abounded. But Deathroy’s return a few weeks ago confirmed that his absence was in fact down to nothing more sinister than the goose’s migratory pattern.

3. The Muscovy (alt. name: the Durkey)

Flickr: Just chaos

A relatively rare breed native to Central and South America, the campus Muscovy Ducks are more affectionately known as Durkeys – a reference to their duck-like heads and enormous turkey-sized and refusing to move from parking spaces.

2. Cygnets!

Each Spring, just as we've forgotten how ridiculously, inconceivably, impossibly cute baby swans are, the new season’s cygnets are born.

When this happens, you may as well plan not to get anything done for the next three months. Block your diary out until June, you have some Instagramming to do.

1. Swanny

Swanny is the Students’ Union’s beloved mascot and an emblem of Lincoln student spirit. Whether he’s cheering on sports teams, having his photo taken with adoring fans, or unsettling the real swans, Swanny is undoubtedly the Top Bird on Campus.