Taipei Travel

At Taipei Zoo, black swans in the Tropical Rainforest Area laid a clutch of eggs in February this year. Although they lay eggs every year, cygnets are rarely seen, possibly because free-roaming wild small carnivores in the zoo often damage the eggs. In 2026, the black swans laid eggs again, and to prevent the regret of broken eggs from happening once more, keepers decided shortly after the eggs were laid to swap the real eggs for lifelike dummy eggs, then send the real eggs to the zoo's professional avian artificial incubation room. In the end, one black swan chick was successfully hatched in 2026.

During incubation, the cygnet showed a determined spirit of "breaking its own shell by itself." Even before it emerged, keepers could already hear its loud calls as it pecked at the shell with all its strength. Perhaps the hatching process consumed too much energy, because the moment this lively little life successfully came out of the shell, it was so exhausted that it fell straight asleep on the spot. Its adorable appearance made the keepers both worried and amused. After confirming that the cygnet was safe and healthy, the most challenging task arrived: how to secretly return the recovered chick to its mother. The keepers first drew the mother swan away as a distraction. At the same time, to avoid the black swan pair wondering how a baby had suddenly appeared without them seeing the egg hatch, they placed the chick back in the nest together with the eggshell. Fortunately, the black swan parents quickly accepted their fluffy baby and immediately showed strong protective instincts, finally putting the keepers at ease.

Taipei Zoo sincerely invites visitors to come to the Tropical Rainforest Area and quietly observe this family's interactions. Please avoid loud noises that might put the swan parents on alert, and keep an appropriate distance so you can witness the black swan chick's most natural and adorable growth.