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A widow swan captures the hearts of children after they leave for school by staring at her reflection through a window in an apparent ritual of mourning for her deceased mate<!-- wp:html --><div> <p class="author-section byline-plain">By Mary O Connor </p> <p class="byline-section"><span class="article-timestamp article-timestamp-published"> <span class="article-timestamp-label">Published:</span> 8:23 PM EST, January 21, 2024 </span> | <span class="article-timestamp article-timestamp-updated"> <span class="article-timestamp-label">Updated:</span> 9:00 PM EST, January 21, 2024 </span> </p> <p> <!-- ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/us/news/none/article/other/para_top.html --> <!-- CWV --><!--[if !IE]>>--> <!-- <!--[if IE]>--></p> <p> <!--[if !IE]>>--> <!--<!--[if IE]>--></p> <p> <!--[if !IE]>>--> <!--<!--[if gte IE 8]>>--> <!-- <!--[if IE 8]>--></p> <p> <!--[if IE 9]>--></p> <p> <!--[if IE]>--></p> <p> <!--[if !IE]> --> <!--</p> <p> <!-- SiteCatalyst code version: H.20.3. Copyright 1997-2009 Omniture, Inc. More info available at http://www.omniture.com --> </p> <p> <!-- End SiteCatalyst code version: H.20.3. --> <!--[if IE]>--></p> <p> <!--[if !IE]> --> <!--<!--[if IE]>--></p> <p> <!--[if !IE]> --> <!-- <!-- CWV --></p> <div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">The pain of losing your loved ones is something we all fear.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">And it seems that such pain is felt by other animals too.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">A swan named Sally has captured the hearts of schoolchildren in an apparent mourning ritual for her late partner.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Every day for the past 18 months, the swan crossed a busy road to visit Telford Park secondary school in Shropshire, where she spent hours staring at her reflection in one of the windows.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">The swan frolicked with her mate ‘Harry’ in Madebrook Pond, in a nature reserve near the school. But Harry would have died in 2022.</p> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">A swan named Sally (above) has captured the hearts of schoolchildren in an apparent mourning ritual for her late mate</p> </div> <div class="artSplitter mol-img-group"> <div class="mol-img"> <div class="image-wrap"> </div> </div> <p class="imageCaption">The swan frolicked with her mate ‘Harry’ in Madebrook Pond, in a nature reserve near the school. But Harry would have died in 2022</p> </div> <p class="mol-para-with-font">The staff believes that Sally’s daily pilgrimage is her way of being close to her deceased partner by looking at a shape that is similar in reflection. Billy Goodall, 32, the school’s business manager, told The Sunday Times: ‘I think she is lonely and is doing it for comfort. The children love her. They have a lot of respect for her.’</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">According to Birdfact, a swan losing its mate causes a ‘period of intense grief’ – and some widow swans may have difficulty feeding or preening themselves properly.</p> <p class="mol-para-with-font">Last year the RSPB moved Sally to a lake, but she quickly returned to her pond.</p> </div> <p> <!-- ad: https://mads.dailymail.co.uk/v8/us/news/none/article/other/inread_player.html --></p> <div class="column-content cleared"> <div class="shareArticles"> <h3 class="social-links-title">Share or comment on this article: A widow swan captures the hearts of children after they go to school to stare at her reflection through a window in an apparent ritual of mourning for her deceased mate</h3> </div> </div> </div><!-- /wp:html -->

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The pain of losing your loved ones is something we all fear.

And it seems that such pain is felt by other animals too.

A swan named Sally has captured the hearts of schoolchildren in an apparent mourning ritual for her late partner.

Every day for the past 18 months, the swan crossed a busy road to visit Telford Park secondary school in Shropshire, where she spent hours staring at her reflection in one of the windows.

The swan frolicked with her mate ‘Harry’ in Madebrook Pond, in a nature reserve near the school. But Harry would have died in 2022.

A swan named Sally (above) has captured the hearts of schoolchildren in an apparent mourning ritual for her late mate

The swan frolicked with her mate ‘Harry’ in Madebrook Pond, in a nature reserve near the school. But Harry would have died in 2022

The staff believes that Sally’s daily pilgrimage is her way of being close to her deceased partner by looking at a shape that is similar in reflection. Billy Goodall, 32, the school’s business manager, told The Sunday Times: ‘I think she is lonely and is doing it for comfort. The children love her. They have a lot of respect for her.’

According to Birdfact, a swan losing its mate causes a ‘period of intense grief’ – and some widow swans may have difficulty feeding or preening themselves properly.

Last year the RSPB moved Sally to a lake, but she quickly returned to her pond.

By