The beauty of Malcolm Schuyl’s photographs of swans gliding on the Thames or nesting on river banks contrasts vividly with his chapter on the perils which face these graceful birds in modern life.

Although anglers’ use of lead weights was banned 25 years ago, high levels of lead are still leading to deaths, according to Schuyl’s book The Swan: A Natural History (Merlin Unwin, £20).

The author, a wildlife photographer who lives in Ewelme, is a biologist by training and has developed a strong interest in ecology and conservation. The book is the culmination of decades spent observing swans bathing, preening, sleeping, mating and hatching.