Badger tunnels prompt Wyke Regis Cemetery warning

The town council said it had tried its best to mark out the badger tunnels but people visiting the cemetery should be "very mindful"

Badgers have dug a network of tunnels through a cemetery, prompting a council to put up notices warning visitors about the risk of falling into a hole.

The burrowing badgers have made about 50 tunnels in Wyke Regis Cemetery, Dorset, with large holes appearing at numerous sett entrances.

Protection prevents the badgers from being moved.

Weymouth Town Council has apologised for the "distress" caused and said work to map the setts was due to begin.

The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) reported that it was believed the badgers may have come from nearby Curtis Fields, where a housing development is under way.

Tara Williams, council parks and open spaces manager, said: "This is something we could be dealing with for a long time.

"At the moment our immediate concern is that people visiting the cemetery do not fall into one of the holes. We have posted notices and marked out where we have found the burrows."

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Sett entrances have appeared next to graves

Burrows have been marked out with stakes and notices

Signs put up by the town council in the cemetery say: "We have tried our best to identify the badger tunnels and we will continue to monitor the sett, however, more tunnels may be dug, so we ask that you take great care.

"We understand that this will cause you distress and assure you that we are taking appropriate action."

Under the Protection of Badgers Act 1992 it is illegal to interfere with a sett.

Licences from Natural England to move badgers are only granted in exceptional circumstances.