A story of 3 cygnets

A few weeks ago I reported seeing some 1st year swans on our bit of the canal.  Today I discovered where they came from.  I had thought they were some of last year's cygnets but not so.  This evening as I walked along the canal I met a lady looking for 3 cygnets.  It turns out she had rescued a couple of swans several years ago and had them on a pond in her garden.  Last year they produced 3 cygnets and earlier this year the male was chasing off these 1 year olds as they were breeding again.  The woman decided to release the 3 onto the canal and these are the young ones we saw in April.  They were in the company of a 2 year old swan.  

The lady said at first they were very wary and this perhaps explains why I saw them hovering near any nest they could find until they were chased off.  Is it too much of a stretch to imagine they were looking for adult company?
They haven't been seen for a couple of weeks but this probably means they have moved up the canal a bit.  They were certainly trying their wings when I saw them.