Heron dies after appalling airgun attack - RSPCA

The heron died four days after the attack

A heron has died after an "appalling" shooting with an airgun, the RSPCA has said.

The bird was left with a broken wing when it was hit by air pellets near Southport.

It was treated first at Rufford Vets in Southport before one of the pellets was removed at Rutland House Veterinary Hospital in St Helens.

The bird was taken to the RSPCA's Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre in Nantwich where vets tried to mend the breaks in its wing but the heron died four days later.

An X-ray shows the bullets

The RSPCA said the bird was found wounded on 18 April by a member of the public who took it to the vets.

Calling for stricter controls on airguns, Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre manager Lee Stewart, said: "We’re appalled that people take pleasure from cruelly and deliberately targeting wild and domestic animals in this way but sadly these types of incidents are not uncommon."

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