A swan mourning the death of its companion on a German railway track had to be removed by firefighters. The mourning bird held up 23 trains for 50 minutes. At least 20 trains were cancelled.
On the incident that took place on December 23, the two birds had strayed onto the line of high-speed trains between Kassel and Gottingen. One of the birds died after getting caught in the power cables overhead.
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The swan put up a resistance as officials tried to lure it away from its companion's body. The dead swan and its partner had to be eventually removed from the track using special equipment.
The surviving swan was unharmed and later released onto the river Fulda, an AP report reads.
Swans tend to mate for life. They are known to mourn the death of their partners by remaining at the site of the other's death.