Swans decapitated amid rising attacks against waterfowl in England and Wales

Nine decapitated swans are among the victims of a rising number of sadistic attacks against waterfowl, according to police data.

Police recorded a 59% increase in crimes against swans, ducks and geese from 2020 to 2022. The crimes ranged from fireworks and BB guns being shot into duck ponds to swans and geese being strangled and beheaded.

Avon and Somerset police found the remains of two swans in a blood-filled bathtub surrounded by shotgun shells on open land. In Dorset, a decapitated swan was found by an underpass with an arrow sticking out of its body.Neighbouring Devon and Cornwall recorded three separate incidents of swans being decapitated, as well as a goose that had a stable door slammed and bolted on its neck.

Three more swans were found with their heads chopped off in London, one in Merseyside and another in Avon and Somerset over the three-year period.

A man in Cumbria was arrested after picking a swan up by its neck and throwing it at someone.

Ducks have also been attacked. In Merseyside, youths were reported to police for shooting fireworks into a duck pond, while in Essex a mallard died after being shot with a BB gun.

Avon and Somerset police said a large number of ducks were found tied up and drowned in the village of Yatton.

Police in England and Wales recorded a total of 62 crimes against ducks, swans and geese between 2020 to 2022, based on data accessed under freedom of information laws by the Guardian.

There were 27 crimes against these birds in 2022, up from 18 in 2021 and 17 in 2020. Essex (11), Merseyside (11) and Devon and Cornwall (nine) accounted for half of the nationwide tally.

The Wildlife and Countryside Act of 1981 protects wild birds, making it illegal to take, injure or kill them, or to damage or destroy their eggs or nests. Offenders face a maximum penalty of six months in prison and/or an unlimited fine.

An RSPCA spokesperson said: “We say we’re a nation of animal lovers and yet every year we see wild animals in our wildlife centres and animal hospitals that have been badly injured or killed after being shot with a gun or catapult for ‘fun’ – or beaten, mutilated or poisoned.

“Sadly, we suspect what we are seeing is just the tip of the iceberg, and there may be many more deliberately injured wild animals out there, which are never found and which die a drawn-out, painful death.

“There is no place for cruelty to animals in today’s society and we urge anyone who spots suspicious activity when out and about or sees anything online to consult the RSPCA website for advice, or to speak to Crimestoppers or their local police force.”

The Witham MP Priti Patel unveiled a memorial bench this year for a family of four swans that were killed by youths with catapults in Coggeshall, Essex.

At the event in April, a local resident said: “The four mute swans were very much loved by local people and I am pleased that we have been able to find such a fitting way to commemorate their lives and the very great pleasure they brought to us all by their presence here.”

cover photo:Devon and Cornwall recorded three separate incidents of swans being decapitated. Photograph: Maureen McLean/Shutterstock