It's being reported that another of Dawlish's black swan cygnets has been lost.

Today, Friday May 21, the waterfowl wardens have posted on Facebook the 'very sad news' that the smaller of the two cygnets has not been seen since the pair were spotted together on Wednesday evening – and only one was with the parents the following morning.

It's been a roller-coaster couple of months for the waterfowl wardens. On March 21, two swans, a brother and sister from last year, went missing – and were on the loose for several weeks. They were frequently spotted as far afield as Exmouth, Budleigh Salterton, Torquay and Paignton, but always too far out at sea to be caught.

There was happiness at the hatching of three baby cygnets on March 18 – and again in early April when a new breeding pair of black swans arrived in Dawlish. They were kept in the aviary for a week, and successfully released on to the Brook on April 13.

But on April 17, one of the three cygnets was attacked by a dog. The little bird suffered puncture wounds and had to be treated with antibiotics; the incident prompted further calls for dogs to be kept on short leads when being exercised near the Brook.

On April 23, one of the three cygnets was reported missing, and was not seen again.

There was relief on May 4 when the wandering pair of swans finally returned from their travels – but it was short-lived. They kept trying to leave again, and were seen venturing out on to the roads. They were also not being accepted back by the other swans on the Brook, and the wardens decided that they should be rehomed to somewhere they could have more freedom and remain safe.

Then, on May 13, there was some light relief when the recently-arrived breeding pair of swans escaped from Tuck's Plot during the high tide, and made their way on to the beach near Network Rail's construction site. With the assistance of Network Rail and their contractors BAM, they were rescued before they could get out to sea and taken to the higher part of the Brook.

But today, with the loss of another cygnet, there's another outpouring of sadness and sympathy on the Dawlish Waterfowl Facebook page, with many people expressing dismay at what seems to be a constant run of bad luck for the much-loved black swan population.