Posted on 03/31/2010 5:10:27 PM PDT by Free ThinkerNY
A mysterious predator which devours adult ducks by pulling them beneath the water at a popular beauty spot has been nicknamed the "Lough Ness Monster" by locals.
The creature is believed to have killed at least three fully-grown birds at the lake, leaving only a smattering of feathers as evidence of the crimes.
Witnesses have so far been unable to identify the perpetrator, although pike, catfish and even mink have been suggested as possible culprits.
Local councillors are now warning schoolchildren not to go paddling at the site, and dog owners have been being asked not to let smaller animals swim in the waters.
One dog walker described her horror at seeing a mallard disappear into the water at Stonebow Washlands in Loughborough, Leicestershire, never to be seen again.
She said: “I saw two mallards and the female was flapping her wings. I thought she may be cleaning herself, but she was quite frantic and was going up and down. Next thing I knew she was gone.
“I went over to have a closer look. The male was still there and I was about 30 feet away watching him intently. I stood there for two or three minutes and then in a flash all that was left on the water was a few feathers.”
The number of ducks on the lake have dwindled since the killer creature started terrorising the area.
Now users of the lagoons are being warned not to go into the water and local schoolchildren have been told not to go pond-dipping at the site. Dog owners are also being asked not to let smaller animals swim in the waters.
(Excerpt) Read more at telegraph.co.uk ...
Mmmm duck. At least he has taste.
Snapping turtle...
my daughter lost some of her ducks to a snapping turtle in her pond.....a friend of ours also lost his ducks to a snapper in his pond...he finally got a shot at it and it took 3 days for the dead thing to float to the surface...2 foot long and weighted almost 25 pounds...
Those ducks otter be more careful!
Wow!
A unseen snapper happily snapping
WOW
Only at FReepers
Yup. I've got my own little lake in Il. and I've had to get
rid of these guys to keep my duck population from extinction. The good part is Paul Prudhome (sp?) has a
great soup recipe for them.
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Thanks Free ThinkerNY. Just adding, not pinging. Big snapping turtles? But no, this is happening in Britain.pike, catfish and even mink have been suggested as possible culpritsTo all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. |
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Don’t let the AFLAC duck near that place!
Maybe it is a rabid beaver?
When did lunch become a crime? If a duck dinner is wrong, I don't want to be right!
Re: #3. It sounds exactly like what a snapping turtle will do. The preferred method for zapping the beasts is to take a line and hang a chicken leg off a pier, and then take a .22 rifle and wait for that head bobbing up.
If there are pythons in FLA why not snappers in Britain?.
Nothing stays at home anymore.
On so-o-o many levels..
Yup.
There’s a legendary [but real] one in Little Pool that’s bigger around than an old-fashioned wash tub.
My dad [and everybody else] has been after it for *years* but the thing is smart.
Last summer, in a crick under an old bridge, I saw one that was at least 20 inches across.
Snappers are one of the few critters I’ve never tried to drag home and make a pet out of.
Last spring, I had a 12 inch one show up in my back yard.
Hubby went to try and pick it up after I told him it would seriously hurt the dogs if they messed with it.
I shrieked at him because he was going to pick it up with his bare hands!
[he had no idea how long and flexible their necks are]
I grabbed a shovel and toted her up onto the ridge.
Let her lay her eggs up there.
That is even better than poisoning pigeons in the park.
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