Pictures: Lake Eola swans through the years

People feed swans on Lake Eola in 1910. (City of Orlando)

A 1923 postcard shows swans swimming in Orlando’s Lake Eola. (State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory)

A swan sits on a nest on the shore of Lake Eola in a photo dated 1915. (State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory)

A swan sits on a nest on the shore of Lake Eola in the early 1900s. (State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory)

A postcard (circa 1900) shows swans swimming in Orlando’s Lake Eola. (State Archives of Florida, Florida Memory)

A pair of swans pass in front of the iconic Lake Eola fountain, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A family observes swans at Lake Eola, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A pair of swans swim along the shore of Lake Eola, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

Swans nap on the shoreline exposed by recent drought conditions with the iconic Lake Eola fountain in background, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

Swans graze at feeding stations on Lake Eola, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A swan passes in front of the iconic Lake Eola fountain, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

Swans nap on the shoreline exposed by recent drought conditions with the iconic Lake Eola pagoda in the background, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

The gold swan boat commemorating 100 years on Lake Eola passes in front of the park’s iconic fountain, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A pair of swans dance in a mating ritual, with the iconic Lake Eola fountain in background, Friday, May 8, 2026. The City of Orlando has announced that the long-running swan program will be paused and the animals removed from the downtown park. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

From left, Steve and Wendy Hermon of England’s Swan Lifeline and Sheila Bolin, CEO of Regal Swan Foundation, grab two swans to be brought to the veterinarian during the second annual Swan Round-up will at Lake Eola Park, on Oct.r 18, 2008. The swans got their annual medical exams and vaccinations during a coordinated capture by experienced kayakers. The roundup is part of a weekend long celebration culminating in the ribbon cutting for the new swans of the world habitat, and the black-tie Swan Soiree. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda / Orlando Sentinel)

All the swans on Lake Eola were rounded up for vaccination and tagged on Oct. 26, 2007. The first annual medical exam program for swans at Lake Eola was under The Regal Swan, an Orlando based swan research group. The swans were corralled into temporary holding pens for their inoculations and exams. (Julie Fletcher/Orlando Sentinel)

A young visitor to Lake Eola Park gets an up-close view of one of the park’s iconic swans on Nov. 6, 2023. The swans have been a fixture at Lake Eola since being placed there by the City of Orlando in 1922. There are 5 species totaling 60 swans currently living at the park in downtown Orlando. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A Royal Mute Swan and its babies are seen seen at Lake Eola in downtown Orlando in June 2023. The City of Orlando said on Tuesday, February 27, 2024, that two cases of bird flu have been found among the lake’s famous swans. A Royal Mute Swan and an Australian Black Swan both died from Avian Influenza, the city said. (Roger Simmons/Orlando Sentinel)

Commissioner Patty Sheehan shows one of the swans, as they are unloaded prior to their release into Lake Eola Park, on July 14, 2021. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/ Orlando Sentinel)

A sign posted at Lake Eola Park warns about Avian Flu on Feb. 29, 2024, after some bird deaths at the park. An investigation found the 4 swans to be positive for Avian Influenza. The sign urges visitors to the park to take the following precautions: Avoid direct contact with birds and only observe them from a distance; do not feed birds; avoid contact with any bird excrement; and remove your shoes before entering your home and clean them off if contamination is suspected. (Rich Pope/Orlando Sentinel)

Young swan cygnets travel with their mother on Lake Eola on May 17, 2012. (George Skene/Orlando Sentinel)

One of the Australian black swans at Lake Eola keeps an eye on passing visitors at the park in downtown Orlando on Aug. 28, 2024. The City of Orlando added six new swans to Lake Eola recently to replenish the current bevy of 50 trumpeter, black neck, whooper, royal mute and Australian black swans. The swans have been residents of the park since the early 1920s. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

Orlando City Commissioner Patty Sheehan talks about the deaths in recent weeks of 12 swans at Lake Eola Park. on Dec. 29, 2025. Sheehan has been a longtime advocate for the care of the iconic birds, including championing the city’s Swan-A-Thon fundraising program. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

Swans at Lake Eola Park in downtown Orlando, Florida, on April 2, 2024. (Ricardo Ramirez Buxeda/Orlando Sentinel)

Visitors enjoy watching swans at Lake Eola Park on Feb. 16, 2026. With no new swan deaths reported at the lake in several weeks, city officials and swan advocates are optimistic that the avian flu outbreak that killed 29 of the birds may be over. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A flock of pigeons fly over the swans at Lake Eola Park on Feb. 16, 2026. With no new swan deaths reported at the lake in several weeks, city officials and swan advocates are optimistic that the avian flu outbreak that killed 29 of the birds may be over. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

Visitors enjoy watching swans at Lake Eola Park on Feb. 16, 2026. With no new swan deaths reported at the lake in several weeks, city officials and swan advocates are optimistic that the avian flu outbreak that killed 29 of the birds may be over. (Joe Burbank/Orlando Sentinel)

A dead swan is pictured floating in Lake Eola in Orlando on Dec. 27, 2025. (Hal Boedeker)