Police officers are searching for the person who shot a swan in the head while she was watching over her unhatched eggs.

The mother swan was found on April 22, and it is only one of the five similar attacks and has been called by the Queen’s swan marker an act of ‘mindless cruelty.’

The animal charity that watches over the area said the incident is the fifth one in just 10 days. Four other swans have been injured and one of those has succumbed to injuries.

A support center is now looking after the eggs. Wendy Hermon of Swan Support said: “She was sat on a nest and they shot her in the head. We got a call to say she had blood all over its head. We went to pick her up and she had an operation on Thursday to remove an 8mm ball fired from an air weapon.

“She’s very subdued but she’s okay and will hopefully make a full recovery. I think it’s sick, sick people who have nothing else better to do. How can someone shoot a defenceless swan sat on a nest?”

The Queen’s Swan Marker, David Barber MVO, said: “I am shocked and disgusted to learn of the shooting of a female swan who was sitting on a nest of four eggs. At the present time the swan is still alive but this is a life threatening injury and we do not know whether she will survive.

“This type of mindless cruelty is totally unacceptable and unnecessary and I sincerely hope the perpetrator of this abhorrent act will be pursued and punished accordingly.

“I hope that anyone with knowledge or information about this crime will report it to Thames Valley Police.”

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