Residents in Stratford, Ont., were being asked to stay on the lookout Wednesday as five of the city’s iconic swans remained at large.

What started as a typical day for Quin Malott, Stratford’s parks and forestry manager, two weeks ago quickly turned into a wild swan chase.

During Malott’s usual venture along Lake Victoria, where he goes daily to feed the swans, he noticed that three of the six he usually saw swimming in the city’s centre were missing.

“So we thought, you know, they’re probably down on the other side by the golf course or what have you,” he said.

Not thinking much of it, Malott left the area. But when he returned the next day, all six were missing, leaving no trace — not even feathers.

“So we started to do our search,” he said.

Despite days of searching along the rive

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