Ottawa's royal swans may make Quebec their permanent home.
A City of Ottawa report recommends they remain year round at their winter home at Parc Safari in Hemmingford.
Only five swans remain; four are the descendants of the six mute swans Queen Elizabeth gave Canada for its centennial in 1967, and one is an Australian black swan.
The release of the royal swans has been an annual spring and summer tradition for the past five decades.
The city made a deal with Parc Safari in 2015 to have the zoo care for the birds in the winter after the Ottawa facility was deemed too cramped.
The birds have been transported back and forth since then to spend the summer on the Rideau River.
The report now says the swans should stay at the zoo, because are not enough swans left for a viable flock and Park Safari can provide them with constant monitoring. The birds will also avoid the stress of transporting them back and forth twice a year.
A decision will be made June 20.
