Man's horrific discovery after bag dumped in bush started moving
A protected bird of prey has been discovered dumped in a grain sack, before it was saved and released back into the wild uninjured, Tasmanian wildlife carers say.
Brightside Farm Sanctuary, at Cradoc in southern Tasmania, told of a neighbour who made the startling discovery on Sunday, on their Facebook page.
“Yesterday a neighbour was at Deep Bay in Sky Farm Rd when he saw a white ute dump rubbish in the bush,” Monday’s post read.
“On closer inspection one of the bags moved. The grain sack tied with string contained a live hawk.
“The hawk was brought to Brightside and I made sure it was not injured before I released it.”
Noting the animal was a protected species, the carer said they reported the incident to police.
“What sort of vile human dumps a living animal in a bag and leaves it to suffer a drawn out hideous death,” the Brightside carer asked.
The post enraged animal lovers, who were in disbelief over the find.
“WTF…. Why???? Would a scum of the earth think to do this?” one wrote on Facebook.
Tasmania Police told Yahoo News Australia the matter was being investigated by the Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment (DPIPWE).
The Department of Primary Industries, Parks, Water and Environment told Yahoo News Australia it was aware of the report and is investigating further.
“Wildlife Rangers have confirmed that the bird, whose species is not verified, was released alive after being received at a local animal sanctuary.
“All reports of alleged unlawful harming of wildlife are regarded extremely seriously by the Department.”
The DPIPWE said bird of prey species were afforded levels of protection under the Nature Conservation Act 2002 with a number of species also further protected under the Threatened Species Protection Act 1995.
Maximum Fines exceeding $100,000 apply to the taking of listed species under the Threatened Species Protection Act 1995, or penalties exceeding $16,000 apply to the unlawful taking of protected or Specially Protected species.
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