The 80-year-old says she saw a woman kicking away a swan that had made a nest near the pool at the Hidden Lake Apartments in Lakewood.

Lucy the swan and her mate, Ricky, have been fixtures there for about five years. They were brought in from out of state to add to the ambiance of the apartments, which overlook a private lake.

Woodward says she approached the woman, who was carrying Lucy’s eight eggs in a plastic bag and coat. The two women yelled back and forth.

“You can’t do this! This is wrong,” Woodward recalls saying.

The other woman, who lives at the end of the lake but not at the apartments, eventually walked off.

A man who spoke on behalf of the woman said Friday that she took the eggs out of concern for baby birds that were dying prematurely.

But during Tuesday’s confrontation, Woodward saw the woman as a threat to the eggs. She called apartment security.

A few hours later, Hidden Lake’s manager and assistant manager went to the woman’s house to get the eggs back. They say they were told she had buried them in her backyard.

The unusual incident not only ignited a lakefront feud, but also caused a game of jurisdictional tag among the Lakewood police and animal control departments, as well as state and federal wildlife agencies.

The state considers mute swans “deleterious exotic wildlife,” which means they pose a threat to native wildlife. Numerous nature Web sites state the species is nonmigratory and aggressive.

Lakewood police spokesman Dave Guttu said the apartment managers originally called his department. He first contacted state wildlife officials, but they sent him to the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service in Portland because that agency deals with swans.

The federal agency won’t investigate the case because the mute swan isn’t a federally protected species, said spokeswoman Joan Jewett.

Dale Bateman of Lakewood, who spoke to The News Tribune on behalf of the egg-taking woman whom he’d identify only as “Nicole,” said she was looking out for the birds’ best interests.

He says the apartment’s management had asked Nicole to “help them and keep the population under control” during a conversation in March.

Nicole, who regularly feeds and tends to the birds, noticed that the managers weren’t feeding them properly, Bateman said.

Also, he said, Ricky and Lucy have babies every year, and the fledglings haven’t fared well on their own. Three birds that hatched last year flew away; two eventually died, he said.

Nicole and the apartment managers agreed in March to “take away the eggs so no more babies die in the street,” Bateman said.

Lona Kerzman, Hidden Lake’s manager, denies ever making such an agreement.

“No. Never ever would we go to them for help,” she said.

It’s unclear what will happen between the two sets of avowed swan lovers on the lake, overlooked by willow trees and quiet walking paths.

Now that wildlife officials have declined to get involved, about the most Lakewood police could do is file a trespassing charge.

Bateman said he and Nicole question why apartment managers suddenly eschewed their help. The larger issue, he said, is an apartment unable to keep pets out of harm’s way.

“I just say that people should be responsible,” he said.

But Hidden Lake residents are angry and want authorities to make sure Lucy’s eggs are safe. The birds are especially popular with seniors who live in the complex off 110th Street Southwest.

“Everybody is just heartbroken” Woodward said.

Brent Champaco: 253-597-8653