The purpose of this petition is to facilitate a request to State and Federal officials for a formal investigation and review of the NJ Division of Fish and Wildlifes policy and procedures as related to the public trust concerning the actions recently taken by that agency in the killing of 55 Mute Swans in Mannington Meadows, Salem County, New Jersey. The explanation provided by the Assistant Director of that Division was that killing was done for the dual purpose of population thinning of an non-native species and for sampling for avian flu (H5N1).

Mannington Meadows and its expansive waterways have been supporting generations of wildlife for decades and have been one of the primary homes in New Jersey for the Mute Swan. The area of Mannington Meadows is famous as a wildlife habitat that attracts local residents as well as tourists wishing to see these majestic birds in their natural environment.

According to the CDC website there have been no cases of avian flu ever reported in the United States in either humans or fowl which makes these excuses disingenuous and the action of mass eradication of these valued and elegant birds an outrage and breach of the public trust.